The Blind Leading the Blue
by BrusselsSprout
Summary: Toph does not need anyone, certainly not the whiny Avatar or his bossy friend. Thank you very much, she's totally fine on her own. Zuko is sick of the Earth Kingdom and he just wants to go home. He really shouldn't stop when he witnesses some thugs threatening another stray kid, but he does. The chance encounter changes everything. S2 AU - crossposted from ao3
1. Chapter 1

Being alone was pretty great. Putting one foot in front of the other, listening to the song of the birds, the rustling of leaves, feeling the pleasant warmth of the soft dirt under her feet. No admonishments from mother to behave like a lady. No rules from father to imprison her. Not having to put up with bossy Water Tribe girls' constant nagging. Toph felt like she was filled with the intoxicating lightness of freedom. There was no space inside her for doubt or niggling seconds thoughts. The encounter with the old tea-guy centered her. She knew exactly who she was, even if people couldn't always see it. She didn't need them - they needed her. And if they came to find her, maybe she could be persuaded again to help them. Until then, she was fine on her own.

_Or was she? _The birds have gone quiet. She tensed inside as the vibration of heavy footsteps shook the soles of her feet. At least six men. Faint, dull metallic sounds accompanied the vibration. Whoever these guys were, they were armed to the teeth. Toph felt the inevitable rush in her veins, making her feel fully alive, all her senses on the highest alert.

"Are you lost, little lady?" The voice that spoke to her was gruff, unpleasant. She had heard that dismissive tone so many times in the fighting arena. It always ended the same way - with cries of dismay, groans of pain. It was the most satisfying feeling in the world to get these bullies off their high horse.

"None of your business, imbecile," she replied loudly. Outraged breathing followed her words. Toph smiled to herself pleased; she was a rock and would not be intimidated.

"We could take you back to your family - you must be scared to be alone," the voice continued taunting her. "I'm sure they'd pay anything to get such a doll back."

_This idiot did not just call her a doll _. Toph cracked her knuckles. He was going to get the special Earth Rumbling champion treatment, she decided immediately.

"She's blind, Cho. I doubt her family even wants want her," another ruffian interjected nervously. Well, what would this guy know?

Trying to decide which of the two idiots to attack first, Toph shifted her stance slightly. She almost missed the soft landing of a pair of feet that seemed to appear out of nowhere, planted squarely between her and the attackers.

"Leave her alone." The soft feet came with a gravelly voice used to command.

Toph puffed in annoyance. She did not need another dumbwit playing self-appointed hero spoiling her fun. She most certainly did not need some stranger running to her defense as if she was a helpless little girl.

"Move out of my way!" she yelled.

When the stranger remained stubbornly rooted between her and her prey, she impatiently stomped her left foot, shifting the ground under the meddlesome hero-wannabe, pushing him out of the way. She chuckled softly as she heard his shocked gasp, but she couldn't waste too much time on him. Thrusting her arms forwards she attacked the bullies. She was in her element.

-0-

* * *

Zuko was sick of the Earth Kingdom. He hated everything about the place; the barren landscape, the stinky swamps, the dirt, the dusty villages full of ungrateful peasants. Uncle was wrong - he didn't belong here, he never would. What he chose to do didn't matter - only who he was. Fire Nation and a firebender - to be regarded only as an enemy, even when he stood up to the corrupt soldiers. He was sick of running, of hiding, of being hungry. His only choice was to capture the Avatar and return home with his honor or die trying. This life was not worth living anyway.

He looked up into the blue sky, searching for a trace of the Avatar's bison. After the North Pole, the monk and his annoying companions had to come to the Earth Kingdom; after all, it was the next element in the cycle. He couldn't let Azula find him first. The thought was maddening. Despite Zuko doing the gruelling search for three endless years, it would be his sister just swooping in and taking all the glory. Like always. Well, not this time. Finding the Avatar was his destiny.

His ostrich-horse stopped on the middle of the path, craning her neck towards a cloudberry bush - her favourite snack. Zuko dug his heels in, but the animal was as stubborn and unyielding as the rest of this spirit-forsaken land. Getting off the saddle with a sigh, he crouched down to pick some berries for the peckish beast. Well, maybe sometimes good deeds did get their reward. Stuck between the thorny branches of the shrub, his fingers found a waxy, rough glob of hair - in the off-white color of the Avatar's bison. This could not be just pure coincidence. It had to be a sign that his quest was not over yet - as long as he didn't give up hope.

"We must hurry," he told the ostrich-horse while offering her the berries. Her beak pricked at his palm as she deftly picked out the offering. "Let's go!"

Once she finished her snack, Zuko hopped back into the saddle, and they galloped down the path. He had a hunch that the Avatar would go towards Ba Sing Se. Once inside the city, he would be out of not only Zuko's, but the whole Fire Nation's reach. There was no time to waste.

After a few minutes they reached a narrow ravine - the rocks separated by a river running deep under them. Earth Kingdom bridges were flimsy, often treacherous - Zuko learnt this the hard way. He got off from the saddle, and holding the lead of the ostrich-horse, he started to coax her onto the narrow wooden structure, talking to the frightened animal in a soothing voice, until there was solid ground under their feet again. Zuko was about to continue his journey, when he spotted another white glob, just a few steps from the road. He was on the right track. He went to pick it up, when beneath the road he spotted a group of rough-looking Earth Kingdom men surrounding a child. He crawled closer soundlessly. He couldn't make out what they were saying exactly, but the tone of voice was that of unmistakable threat. The kid spoke back on a high, clear voice. It was a girl.

Zuko's hand instinctively went to the hilt of his trusty double swords. Then he shook his head. No - he would not go down this path again. It was a dead-end_ . _This wasn't his fight, these weren't his people. He had his quest to focus on and finally he had a clue to follow. He needed to focus on the trail before it went cold. Azula was certainly not going to stop saving some random stray kid. Turning away, he walked to his horse.

_Is that who you are? Someone who lets a defenseless little girl in the hands of scoundrels? What happened to my son? _The voice of his mother pierced his soul. It had been getting louder ever since he left Iroh. He thought he was going to be free of his uncle's constant nagging and reproaches, so he could focus on doing what he needed to do to restore his honor. But instead of finding peace, he was haunted by bittersweet memories of his mother. Disappointing Iroh was one thing - he could do that. Their daily clashes over the last years steeled him for confrontation, but he was terrified of losing those tiny fragments of Mother that he still held onto.

Zuko sighed in defeat. Might as well get over with this quickly. He pulled his mask out from his saddle-bag, climbed up on the closest tree, navigating his way through the thick branches until he was just to the right of the group. Zuko observed the scene quietly, calculating his strategy. To her credit, the girl - who was small and rather filthy - showed no fear. She stood her ground, staring at the men with unblinking eyes. As another ruffian spoke - this time a tall, thin fellow in a tattered shirt - the girl turned her face, directly looking towards Zuko. He noticed with shock that her green eyes were covered by a milky film - the kid was blind.

Without further hesitation, Zuko jumped, landing in between the girl and the bandits, his swords drawn.

"Leave her alone," he growled at them, raising his weapons.

The reply came not from the men, but on a high-pitched, irritated voice from behind his back. "Move out of my way!"

Zuko glanced back with a frown, trying to see who the girl was talking to. Her unseeing eyes were staring straight at him. Clearly, she wasn't only blind, but also dim-witted, Zuko thought with pity.

The girl stomped her foot angrily and Zuko felt the ground move under him, shoving him aside. He saw the satisfied smirk on her lips as she thrust her arms out in a forceful movement, sending two of the bandits flying at the end of twin stone pillars. An earthbender! One packing quite the punch for that matter.

The thin fellow standing closest to Zuko pulled out a bow and placed an arrow on it. He didn't get to draw the string, as Zuko hit him in the head with the hilt of his sword and the guy collapsed on the ground.

He glanced at the girl, who was busy burying the leader waist deep into rock. The two other members of the group left standing hurried to help their captain. Zuko parried their attack with his swords, but before he could get in a strike, the earth moved under his foot again, shoving him out of the way.

"What's wrong with you?" he snapped at the girl with annoyance.

"I was handling them," the earthbender replied furiously. "I don't need you or anyone to save me. Because I'm Toph Beifong and I'm the greatest earthbender," she chanted punctuating her words with forceful stomps, making quick work of the ruffians, immobilizing each in tiny rock prisons.

The girl - whose name apparently was Toph - took a step back and raised her arms in triumph. "And I don't need you or any other moron to save me." Her sharp tongue was clearly directed at Zuko.

So much for saving helpless little girls, the prince thought bitterly. His first instinct was the right one; he should have just walked away. What an ungrateful brat she was. It was not his fight. He was not wanted or needed.

"I'll be on my way then," Zuko muttered angrily.

Toph just shrugged. Suddenly, the boulder she was standing on started to roll and the girl disappeared with a startled cry on the side of the ravine. Glancing around, Zuko realized that one of the men knocked out at the beginning of the fight regained consciousness. He must have been an earth-bender too. Zuko leapt forward and knocked him out again. He ran to the edge of the ravine and looked down.

He sighed in relief when he saw the girl flailing in panic on top of the water. Well, the brat survived. And she may have been a great earthbender, but she clearly was not a swimmer.

Zuko jumped.


	2. Chapter 2

The ground shifted under her and before she could react, her world had suddenly broken into pieces of terrifying sensations that did not make sense. The wind bit into her skin as she was free falling into an abyss. Toph extended her arms and legs trying to feel for solid ground, to stop the fall somehow, but spinning out of control, she could not command the rocks.

Without any warning, even those shattered pieces disappeared and she was surrounded by icy water. There was no up or down anymore, just a cold slipperiness that disoriented her. She kicked her feet in panic, trying to get somewhere. Anytime she managed to get her head above the surface a new wave crashed over her, pushing her back into the terrifying chaos.

Something brushed against her skin, and she thought of the fearsome water monsters or evil water spirits from the stories her old nanny used to tell her. The hold tightened on her even as she struggled against it furiously. As she managed to break to the surface with a loud gasp, a voice spoke.

"Stop flailing, I'm trying to help." The voice didn't belong to an evil water-spirit, but to the meddlesome guy who jumped into the fight earlier. His meddling was more welcome in this case.

Toph relaxed slightly against his arms and chest. He propelled them with a few strong kicks and pulled her to solid ground. Her hands and arms clawed into the familiar texture of clay, mud and silt. As her body revelled in the cool touch of the soft dirt, the contours of the world appeared again. She was on the riverbank, surrounded by tall cliffs with sharp edges. A canyon of some sort.

Once she had a strong grasp on her surroundings, she turned her attention to her saviour. The lines of his skinny frame etched sharply against the background. She did not feel any vibrations as he shifted on his feet. Definitely not an earthbender. Well, at least he was a swimmer.

Toph opened her mouth to speak, but her words came out as a violent cough. He pulled her into a sitting position and slapped her back forcefully a few times. Once breathing was easier, Toph jabbed his arm.

"Ouch," he yelped indignantly. "What was that for? I guess, next time I'll just let you drown."

"There won't be a next time. There wouldn't have been a first time either, if you hadn't distracted me," Toph barked back with annoyance. She was in control of the fight until he foolishly intervened.

"Well, I'll be on my way, just as soon as we find our way out of this ravine," he growled back. With fluid movement, he got to his feet. After some nervous pacing, he stopped back in front of Toph.

"If you hold onto my back, I should be able to climb this thing..."

"That won't be necessary," Toph waved dismissively. This guy obviously still didn't understand who she was. It was time to show him. "Hold on tight," she smirked slightly, and raising her arms she summoned a stone pillar under their feet, lifting them towards the brim of the canyon. He lost his balance at the sudden movement, but recovered quickly.

"Or we can just use your earthbending, I guess," he muttered as they reached the top. Toph could hear the begrudging respect in his voice. Maybe he wasn't such a bad guy. Well, it didn't matter. They were even now and she had to be on her way.

"Well, I'd say see you around - but since I can't see," she waved her hand in front of her eyes for effect. To Toph's utter disappointed, he didn't laugh. Not even a chuckle. What a hopeless grump. "I guess this is goodbye." She turned and started walking back towards the path.

She took four steps before he called after her, "Wait!"

Toph turned around, fully expecting the inevitable talk about how it was unsafe for her to be wandering alone. She took a deep breath, getting ready to give him a piece of her mind about interfering busybodies. But instead of a speech about the dangers of the world, he simply asked.

"Are you hungry, Toph?" After a pause, he added with a bit more uncertainty in his voice. "That's your name, right?"

"Yes, and now that you mention it, I am hungry." Toph's hand went to her empty stomach. In the heat of the argument with Katara and Aang, she didn't think of packing any food for herself. The last meal she had was a small rice-ball old tea-gramps shared with her. And that was hours ago. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to stick around for dinner. Even if this guy was an annoying do-gooder, he was offering a free meal. "Dinner sounds good… eehm...What is your name again?"

It was a simple question, but his heart quickened. There was just the slightest moment of hesitation, before the terse answer came. "Lee."

Well, who would have thought? Goody-two-shoes was lying. And he was terrible at it. Toph was intrigued.

-0-

* * *

Zuko let out an aggravated sigh. He was cursed by the spirits. Simply, there was no other explanation why they sent another bratty, spirit-damned bending prodigy in his way. It wasn't enough that his whole life he had to put up with his oh-so-perfect sister. No. Destiny condemned him to chasing the ridiculous child-Avatar who seemed to do everything so effortlessly despite never even trying hard. Even his annoying waterbender turned out to be an unnaturally fast learner. This tea-cup sized, insolent, ungrateful earthbending terror with no social graces really shouldn't be his problem. He saved her from drowning and she obviously preferred her own company. She was going to be fine by herself, as long as she kept out of the water.

So what demon possessed him to call after her, and invite her to share the last scraps of his measly dinner? Zuko did not know. But he felt with utter certainty that it was a choice he would come to regret. He wasn't sure whether he was relieved or disappointed when at the mention of food she predictably turned around with an eager look on her face. No stray could afford to turn down a free meal.

"Dinner sounds good… eehm...What is your name again?" she asked, for the first time showing any interest in him.

Zuko hesitated. She was just a blind kid, visibly far from home. But considering how messed up things got last time he decided to help a kid, it was better to play safe. "Lee."

The word tasted bitter on his lips, like the seaweed they ate with Iroh during their desperate voyage from the North Pole or the roots of the forest they were foraging on when the charity of the dusty villages did not yield enough to feed them. Lee was a destitute vagabond with no money, family, honor or country. He was desperation and hopelessness.

"It doesn't seem to suit you." The girl's unseeing eyes seemed to pierce right through him, reading his gloomy thoughts. It was unnerving. Her toes were drawing lazy circles into the soft dirt. "We'll have to find you a new name."

Zuko blinked. Was she mocking him somehow? It was probably just a coincidence. Iroh would no doubt have a proverb about it. Instead of responding, Zuko busied himself with collecting firewood. He made a big show of hitting two rocks together as if they were spark rocks, before he lit the pile of dry twigs and leaves with a flick of his wrist, controlling the spark tightly. Not being able to firebend openly was also going on his nerves; his bottled up energy coursing through his veins like fire ants just before a thunderstorm.

"Mmmm, that feels good," commented Toph with a satisfied look on her face. She laid back in the dirt next to the fire, crossing one leg over the other, picking her dirty toes with a stick. Clearly, the girl was raised in a barn.

Zuko turned away from the revolting sight with a grimace. He pulled out a small metal plate to warm up the last portion of the food he got from Sela. There was barely enough for one.

He divided the noodles and small scraps of meat evenly, handing a bowl to the girl. She wolfed down her portion, slurping loudly. Zuko shot a disapproving look at her, like his mother used to give him and Azula - well, mostly him, Azula had of course, perfect dinner manners - when they did not eat gracefully, but realized that it was completely useless - Toph could not see his frown or his grimace. And even if she could, she probably wouldn't care.

"Do you like it?" he asked, hoping she would take the hint.

"I've had better, but it will do. Do you have any more meat?" she asked, her mouth full.

Zuko fished out some more scraps of meat from his bowl and tossed them into hers with his chopsticks. She was a scrawny little creature and he was used to skipping meals by now. He would have to get supplies the next day, which meant going into populated areas; always a risky proposition, but especially now that he stupidly revealed himself to a village full of Earth Kingdom peasants.

"Do you have some tea by any chance?" she asked once she licked her bowl clean.

Perhaps it was an innocent question, but it felt like a punch in the gut. Tea reminded Zuko of Iroh and the guilt that was gnawing at him for leaving his uncle behind to fend for himself in the wilderness. Being alone was not at all what he imagined it would be like, and if he was honest with himself, which he rarely was, he missed the old man. Even his snoring, his maddening proverbs and his stupid tea.

"Drink this." Zuko handed over his waterskin to Toph.

She took long gulps and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

He tossed the waterskin back to him with precision. It seemed that despite her lack of vision, she sensed the world around her with frightening clarity.

"Well, we'd better make camp here for the night. It's getting late," Zuko noted, realizing too late that he'd used the plural pronoun.

-0-

Dinner was the bland cooking of country bumpkins, but Toph was famished, so she ate it with relish. Once her stomach was sated, she turned her attention back to her companion, who was most definitely not called Lee.

"So where are you from, Lee?" she asked, pausing just a little before mentioning his fake name.

Loud gulp. Shallow breathing. "You know…here and there," he rasped finally. Lie number two.

"What do you mean?" Toph continued her interrogation on her sweetest voice, the one that always lulled people into thinking she posed no danger.

"I traveled around with my uncle." His heartbeat was normal, he was telling the truth on this one.

What were the chances that on the same day she would run into an uncle trailing his nephew and a nephew who used to travel with his uncle? Maybe that was all there was to the mystery - the boy was just like her, running away from his family.

"Your uncle. Where is he now?"

"I'm not sure. We got separated." Long beat. Truth. Two short thumps. Lie number three.

Toph pulled her knees to her chest. "I also got separated from my group."

As the day turned into night, she started missing them a little. Definitely Sokka's silly jokes around the campfire. He was a big goof, but also kind of sweet. Appa chewing on hay. Momo chirping excitedly as he settled down next to Aang. The Avatar's soft snores. Even Katara... no! She did not miss her bossy grumbling at all, Toph reminded herself. "But they were annoying, so not that big a loss, really," she added.

"Where are you heading? I can help you get home," Not-Lee offered. There he was again with his annoying chivalry.

"I'm not planning on going back home. And I'm fine by myself. I can carry my own weight - I don't need to be treated like a helpless little girl," Toph huffed angrily.

"I don't think you are helpless. But I have an ostrich horse and the closest village is two days' walk away," he replied, his heart making a weird flip as he mentioned the ostrich-horse. There was something dodgy about the animal. Toph wondered if she should count it as a half-lie. "Anyways, you don't need to decide now. Let's set up camp."

Toph extended her arms to the side, summoning a stone-tent. This move always got a rise out of Sugar Queen. "Done," she announced smugly.

"Neat trick," not-Lee replied in a flat tone. He didn't sound either annoyed or impressed. He shuffled through his bags without making any commentary about Toph's lack of offer to help. Strangely, the absence of nagging made her want to pitch in.

"I can make one for you too, if you want," she offered.

"No, thanks. Just rest - it's been an eventful day. I'll take first watch," his voice was warm and reassuring.

Toph yawned. She was a bit weary indeed. The soft ground vibrated around her with the crackling of the campfire. It was kind of soothing. As she drifted off to sleep, in that curious place between dreamworld and wakefulness, where sounds and sensations became blurry and bled into one another, she thought she felt the fire move in rhythm with his even breaths.


	3. Chapter 3

Zuko pulled the blue mask down on his face as another wagon appeared on the road; its contours black against the bright morning sunlight. He hoped that this would be the right one. Most of the folks out at the crack of dawn were poor farmers headed for the fields; with their meager food portions for the day hanging in their mostly empty satchels. They were not the right target, no matter how hungry he was.

A fat merchant with a soft belly would be an entirely different matter - those could afford to lose a couple of food sacks or a purse filled with coins. The war put many people through suffering and hunger, but there were quite a few who made their fortune on the misfortune of others; those who overcharged the army for supplies while the soldiers went hungry, who gave predatory loans to farmers whose fields were destroyed. There were plenty of dishonorable fatcats in the Earth Kingdom. He hoped for one of them to come down on this dusty road.

Zuko held his breath as the wagon approached the section of the road where he was lying in wait, hidden behind a large boulder. The man sitting in front was whistling a merry tune; Zuko recognized it as one of the songs his crew used to play on the music nights of the ship. Back in the days when he had thought that things couldn't get worse than being a disgraced, banished prince, with nothing but a rusty little ship to his name. _ Spirits, was he wrong _. Never in his worst nightmares did he imagine that one day he would end up being a common thief.

Still, the blind girl was back in the camp, sleeping. She would wake up soon, hungry and alone. People did all kinds of stupid things when they were hungry. Even Uncle. Zuko almost lost Uncle because of stupid tea-flower poisoning. He wondered guiltily if Uncle would try to eat something dangerous again now that he didn't have Zuko to bring him food.

The wheels of the cart squeaked. Zuko's heart sank when he realized that it was packed with cabbages. He had officially the most rotten luck in the entire world. What in Agni's name do people even do with those stinky green things? Maybe Toph knew. She was an Earth Kingdom peasant after all. Cabbage was better than nothing. Even if it tasted like something an ostrich-horse puked up, at least it wouldn't give them poisonous rashes. He would only take one or two and let the man go, he decided. He crept forward silently, getting ready to jump.

"Daddy, are we nearly there yet?" a small, sleepy voice called from the back of the cart.

"We still have a ways to go. Go back to sleep, sweetheart," the man replied warmly and resumed his whistling.

_ Komodo-rhino-balls! _ Zuko didn't realize there was a kid with the merchant. She would be scared out of his mind from a ruffian attacking their cart. Zuko quickly ducked back behind the boulder waiting for the wagon to go by. When he couldn't hear the squeaking of the wheels anymore, he crawled out again scanning the road for a possible new target. He was about to give up and try his luck at fishing, when he heard boisterous laughter.

Another cart appeared at the curve. Zuko's heart started to pound faster when he recognized the unmistakable red uniforms - Fire Nation soldiers. His mouth went dry as he tried to think what to do. How could he attack his own people? Then again, the army could replace anything he would steal. And wasn't he their prince? If things weren't as they were, he could just walk up to them and order them to give up whatever he needed. It wasn't really stealing if it rightfully belonged to him, was it? Maybe this was exactly the right target.

As the cart came closer, Zuko counted the men - there were four of them. They behaved carelessly too - instead of watching the road, three were playing cards at the back of the wagon - their weapons thrown haphazardly to the side. Maybe it was time to teach them a lesson on the reason for regulations.

Zuko jumped and landed right next to the man driving the cart. With a single hit of the hilt of his sword, he knocked out the driver. The others clamoured for their weapons, but Zuko was faster. He leapt onto the box in the middle, pointing his drawn swords at the soldiers.

"The Blue Spirit!" they exclaimed in fear, raising their hands.

Zuko kicked their weapons off the cart, hoping none of them would be firebenders. Keeping his eyes fixed on the men, he picked up the food bags with one of his blades and threw them across his shoulders.

He glanced around the cart until his eyes settled on a wooden chest.

"I'll take that too," he said.

One of the soldiers, a young man visibly scared out of his mind lifted the box with shaking hands and handed it over to Zuko. "Please don't hurt us," he pleaded.

Zuko grimaced under the mask. The cowardice of these men was a dishonor to the Fire Nation, to the army uniform. Then again, he was not in a position to teach anyone about honor, considering he had lost his a long time ago. Uncle Iroh used to say that not every man was meant to live a life of a soldier. Maybe these men were just some of those under-trained, incompetent farmboys the generals conscripted these days to feed the war effort. He had heard Iroh and Jee grumble about it enough times.

With a quick back-flip, Zuko jumped to the front of the cart, and with the flat of his sword he smacked the ostrich-horse's rump before leaping onto the ground. The frightened beast took off at neck-breaking speed. The sudden movement jolted the cart, throwing the soldiers off balance. Zuko watched the cart disappear in a dust-cloud. It was time to go back to the campsite, and wake up the girl.

Suddenly, there was slow clapping behind him. Zuko spun around, raising his swords. He lowered them immediately when he saw Toph leaning against a rock with an inscrutable expression. She would have looked menacing if not for her face being framed by the wildest head of hair sticking in every direction. Zuko tried to hold back his laughter, which came out as a strange snort instead.

"Well, well… I knew you were hiding something," she crossed her arms over her chest.

Zuko felt mortified that she witnessed him behaving like a common criminal. He debated whether he should try to make a run for it before the girl thought of turning him in, but he decided against it. He surely could explain to Toph that they didn't have a choice, she would understand. Robbing the soldiers was the least evil of the many bad options.

"Toph, I know this looks bad…" he started hesitantly.

She waved his explanation away and burst into an enthusiastic grin. "Are you kidding me? This looked way too much fun, Blue, but next time just wake me up, won't you?"

Well, this was unexpected. Also, it was wrong on so many levels.

-0-

* * *

Toph woke up to the rays of the sun warming her bare feet. Stretching out her arms to the side, she sunk the sides of her stone tent into the ground. Her stomach growled loudly. She hoped not-Lee already made breakfast. Sugar Queen may have been bossy and annoying, but Toph had to admit that she always kept the mealtimes on schedule.

The campsite was eerily empty, with no sight of the guy. As much as Toph had wanted him to get lost the day before when he meddled in her fight, now she felt mostly disappointment and quite a bit of irritation that he vanished. She was hungry, and she had decided to take him up on his offer to ride with him to the next village. But clearly, he was a liar and an unreliable numbskull and Toph was better off without him. Well, good riddance!

She stomped down onto the road. She could carry her own weight and find a different ride easily. She was the famous Blind Bandit after all. People would gather around to watch her fight. Or maybe, she could find the Avatar's group. They did need her, and those guys were never out of food, and even if Appa was stinking furball, at least it was faster than walking.

Her gloomy thoughts were interrupted by the unmistakable noise of a fight. _ Thump, clank, smash, bang. _

"The Blue Spirit!" fearful voices yelled. Toph stopped in her tracks. Toes curled into the ground, her back propped against a rock, she observed the fight.

When she heard a familiar rasp, she blinked in surprise._ Well, who would have thought? _ Not only was Lee not-Lee, he was also not a do-gooder. Nope. In fact, he was a proper trouble-maker of legendary status, rumored to single-handed break the Avatar out of an impenetrable Fire Nation hold. Her mysterious companion was the Blue Spirit. Toph smiled to herself. _ Sweet. _

She waited while he made short work of the soldiers - he was a decent fighter for a non-bender - landing on the ground softly.

She started clapping.

"Well, well, I knew you were hiding something," she said evenly. His heartbeat quickened as he launched himself into an unnecessary apology which Toph waved away impatiently. "Are you kidding me? This looked way too much fun, Blue, but next time just wake me up, won't you?"

"Blue?" he echoed.

"It suits you better than Lee," she needled him a little, hoping that he'd spill out the truth about who he really was.

Instead, the reply came as a grumpy mutter. "Whatever."

Toph shrugged. She was an earthbender - she knew how to bide her time and wait for the perfect moment. She would learn the truth eventually. Her stomach growled loudly, reminding her that there were more pressing issues that figuring out Blue's real identity. Like her overdue morning meal. "I'm kind of hungry. When are we having breakfast?"

"Let's get off the road first, before this place gets swarmed by soldiers," he replied and ushered Toph towards the trees.

He helped Toph onto the ostrich-horse, sitting her in front of him. Losing the ground from under her feet was disorienting, but not as bad as being on Appa's back. Even if there was no solid ground under her, she could at least feel the vibrations under the ostrich-horse's legs. Clutching onto the rough fur of the animal, she kept talking partially to distract herself and partially because her companion was not the chatty type. She kind of missed Sokka; he was never out of funny stories and stupid jokes, which somehow made travelling less dull.

"We could have taken them. I'm a great earthbender if you haven't noticed. And you are not too shabby yourself - it's a pity you are not a bender."

There was a long pause before his terse reply came. "Yeah."

Toph nodded in sympathy. It must have sucked to be a non-bender. Like being deaf or blind for real.

"Otherwise, we could make a really good tag team at Earth Rumble." The crowd loved teams. They made for fun fights. Sometimes Toph thought it could be fun to have a partner, but nobody was good enough to keep up with her.

"What's Earth Rumble?" he asked.

Toph was taken aback. "Which rock did you crawl out of under? Earth Rumble is the most epic fighting arena in all of Earth Kingdom. Everyone knows about it."

Blue didn't reply. Instead, he stopped the ostrich-horse, helping Toph to the ground. "Let's stop here. We'll make food."

She stomped her feet, just to feel the ground in her bones. "Seriously, you never heard of Earth Rumble championships?" She asked incredulously. "Where do you come from?"

"I lived on a ship for the last years, ok?" He was telling the truth.

Toph shuddered. She couldn't imagine anything worse than being stuck on a piece of wood floating on endless water. A prison. She would be totally blind and helpless. "That sounds horrible."

"I like the sea," he said earnestly. There was almost longing in his voice.

"You are a strange guy, Blue."

Instead of replying, he fumbled with the bag he stole from the soldiers.

"So, looks like we have dried meat and rice," he announced after examining its content.

Sounded like a proper balanced meal. "Good. I'll take it in that order," Toph replied. She was really hungry. It was an annoying feeling she was not at all used to.

"I'll make fire. Can you prepare the rice?" he asked.

"Nope," Toph shook her head firmly and occupied herself with picking the dirt from between her toes. Clean feet were the secret of perfect vision. Dust and mud could make the picture blurry.

"What do you mean?" Blue sounded annoyed. Not as annoyed as Katara, but definitely more than a bit peeved.

Toph decided it was time to pull out her best card. "I'm blind, if you haven't noticed." She waved her hand in front of her eyes. It was a move that never failed to produce the required effect of shutting people up in embarrassment.

Except Blue, apparently. "So? It doesn't stop you from fighting."

Toph shrugged. "Well. I guess I was not quite as invested in rice-cooking."

"So you have no idea how to make rice?" he asked.

"Nope, never have, never will," she admitted proudly. "Do you?"

"Of course," he lied. That did not bode well for breakfast at all.

-0-

* * *

Zuko sighed. Toph seemed pretty useless when it came to cooking. Which meant he had to do it himself.

"Of course. Of course I do. Everyone does. It's simple." At least Uncle made it look simple. Not that Zuko ever paid attention to it. Not properly anyways. But how hard could it really be to cook some rice? "You take the rice, mix it with water. Put it on the fire and wait."

"Great! You see? You don't need me at all! So what do you think of my plan?" she chatted eagerly while picking her toes. It was a revolting sight.

Zuko was not aware that she had any kind of plans, other than waiting around doing nothing while he slaved away making breakfast.

"Me and you. The Blind Bandit and the Blue Spirit," she said with a big grin.

"The Blind Bandit?" he asked in confusion.

"That's what they called me back in Gaoling," she boasted. Well, at least that was useful information.

"Is that where you are from?" he asked. "I can help you get go home." Maybe even the next village he could get rid of her. He had some coins now, he could pay someone to escort her back, so he could resume his search for the Avatar in peace. He had been searching the road for chunks of white fur, but it looked like the trail went cold. Again.

"You don't understand. I can never go home," she shook her head dejectedly. There was bitterness in her voice.

"Why not?" he asked.

She pulled her knees to her chest. "Because my parents don't want me." Zuko for the first time wondered if she's been kicked out of her home because of her blindness. Toph continued, "They want a helpless little girl, they want someone who exists only in their head, but not the real me. Do you know what it is like?"

Her question twisted something inside him. That nagging doubt that was always there. Was _ he _ever wanted? Fathers didn't burn their sons on purpose. They didn't send them on hopeless quests.

"Yeah," he said very quietly as if he was afraid to hear himself say it.

Toph seemed to be lost in her own misery. "So I have to find my own way."

"And what do you want to do?" Zuko wondered. He felt for the girl, but couldn't babysit her forever.

"I want to earthbend. I'm really, really good at it," she said full of conviction. From what Zuko had seen, her confidence was well-earned. "Maybe in the next village they can tell me where the biggest championship is."

"Maybe." Oh, Agni, he hoped so.

"And if not, remember my plan. I bet we could make a ruckus," she said cheerfully.

Zuko frowned. He shouldn't indulge her flight of fancy. "This is not a game. Stealing and robbing is bad and I wouldn't have done it if I had a choice. Anyways, I have somewhere to be."

"Come on. It's a win-win. And I know you have done crazier things…" she trailed off.

Zuko was not sure he liked the idea that people from Earth Kingdom backwaters heard about the Blue Spirit. In his situation, any attention was bad. "What have you heard?"

"Rumour has it, you freed the Avatar from Pohuai Stronghold all by yourself." _ Oh. That. _Zuko had been trying very hard to forget about it. About how he committed high treason and about the big, round, grey eyes of a child looking at him full of trust and innocence, asking if they could have been friends in a different lifetime. It was all too messed up, all too tangled.

"Well, he helped too," Zuko croaked. Destiny may have made them enemies, but honor required that he give credit where credit was due. The kid did more than his fair share of the escape. "He's a good fighter."

Toph chuckled. "Twinkletoes? It's hard to believe."

It was a strangely fitting nickname. "You know the Avatar?" Zuko looked at her surprised.

"He asked me to teach him earthbending," nodded Toph proudly, clearly trying to impress the Blue Spirit.

Maybe after all it wasn't such a bad thing that she had discovered Zuko's secret identity. Maybe, it was meant to be. Zuko felt it in his heart again that the Avatar was his destiny. There was no other explanation for crossing paths with his runaway earthbending teacher. This was his shot.

"So why aren't you with him now?" he asked, trying not to sound too eager.

"We had a difference of opinion with him and this annoying, bossy Water Tribe girl he's with," Toph huffed. Zuko couldn't help but like her just a little more for being irked with that exasperating waterbender who was the bane of Zuko's existence. "She did nothing but complain about how I was not doing enough to help out. Well, I was carrying my own weight."

"Clearly." muttered Zuko. Toph was most certainly too self-absorbed to carry anything else. Before he could say it aloud, somewhere in the back of his mind, Iroh started muttering about a teapot and a kettle, whatever that meant. Uncle was always muttering about tea. But thinking of Uncle made Zuko think of the food. The water in the rice-pot was bubbling furiously. "I think the rice is ready."

"Good. I'm starving," Toph rubbed her belly in anticipation.

Zuko scooped some rice into a bowl and tore pieces of smoked meat on top. Toph dug into her food eagerly, without waiting for him to finish putting together his own dish. She had truly despicable table manners.

The smile on her face turned into disgust. "Blue. This is the absolutely worst rice I've ever had."

"Well, then next time, make it for yourself," he retorted. It couldn't be that bad, could it?

Zuko took a bite. _ Spirits. _ She was right. It was terrible; tough and hard. There were burnt pieces all around. And he forgot to put salt in it too. This was a disaster. Zuko missed Uncle and the talent he had for cooking that Zuko had up until now clearly not appreciated enough.

He took big gulps of water to wash down the revolting meal, as he weighed his options.


	4. Chapter 4

They had been riding for hours, at least that's what it felt like for Toph, rattling helplessly in the saddle. Ostrich-horses were not only stinky, they were also hopelessly uncomfortable. Even worse than the Avatar's annoying fur-ball.

The morose silence of his companion didn't exactly help the situation: every conversation initiated by Toph earned only terse, monosyllabic grunts. It was unbearably dull. Without any distraction and her feet deprived of sight, Toph was left alone with her thoughts - and that was currently an uncomfortable place. Disconnected from her element, she didn't feel quite so solid and unshakeable. Doubt started to seep in. Maybe this was a bad idea.

True, Blue didn't complain as much as Katara did, but he was clearly the inferior cook. And that was saying something, considering Sugar Queen's meals were not the height of culinary enjoyment either. Bland, but at least they were edible. Plus, Sokka was at least quite funny and tried to make the travel enjoyable with his jokes. And for Toph's benefit, he was doing a running commentary on the sights. She missed the constant chatter, the easy laughter of the group. Also, if she was honest with herself, it was flattering to be chosen as the Avatar's teacher.

Maybe she acted a bit too hastily to leave them at the first argument. She was sure that they would come back for her. But maybe they already found someone else to teach Aang. Maybe despite all the talk of friendship, she was simply replaceable.

The ostrich-horse came to a sudden halt, which made Toph almost fly out of the saddle head-first. Luckily, Blue caught her. At least he had good reflexes, but it didn't make up for the miserable company.

"Watch where you are going. Are you blind?" Toph couldn't help herself.

The insufferable crab didn't even react to her joke.

"We have a problem," he announced grimly. He jumped off the saddle, leaving Toph even more disoriented. W_ hat an inconsiderate jerk. Did he not realize how blind she felt up here? _Her fists closed tightly around the animal's fur, hoping it would not make a sudden movement.

"The mountain pass is blocked."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Looks like an avalanche." _ Sound of feet pattering against the ground as Blue observed the situation. _ "There is no way around the rocks. We have to loop back the way we came and find a different path."

Well, that didn't sound like something to get your pants in a bunch about.

Toph shrugged. "Or we could just make our own path."

"These are pretty big rocks, Toph." There was definitely more than a hint of skepticism in his voice. She couldn't let that slide.

"Hey, did you not hear me say that I'm the greatest earthbender? Get me off here right now," she ordered.

"Be my guest," strong arms lifted her effortlessly. Toph's toes curled against the sweet, _ oh so sweet dirt _, filling her with sensations.

"Oh, that's better. Let me take a look," Toph sighed happily as she surveyed their surroundings wiggling her toes, placing her palm flat on the earth. Blue wasn't lying, the path was blocked by enormous boulders - a fact that cheered her up considerably. This was exactly what she needed. After hours of riding, it was time to stretch her limbs and do something useful.

She cracked her knuckles, straightened her shoulders and put her foot down firmly on the ground. The vibrations of the earth reached inside her bones. She was a rock and these boulders were no match to the power inside her. "Watch this," she said confidently. She lowered herself in a firm squat her arms in front of her and pushed them out to the sides. The rock opened at her command easily, like the shell of a coconut splitting into two.

"I didn't know you could do that with such a big rock," Blue noted. Toph smiled at the awe apparent in his voice. He made the same rookie mistake all non-benders and even some benders did; thinking that bending had anything to do with physical power.

"Big rock, small rock - it's all the same. It's not about size. It's about showing the rock the stuff you are made of. They are tough, but I'm tougher. Just tackle the thing head on." Toph demonstrated smashing the next - admittedly a bit smaller - rock with her head.

"Neat," he said, trying to sound less impressed than he was, but it wasn't fooling anyone. At least not Toph. "But we have a whole bunch of these boulders. You'll get tired eventually."

"Tired of earthbending?" exclaimed Toph, now getting really offended. This guy clearly needed more of a demonstration. "Do you ever get tired of breathing, Blue?"

"I suppose not," he admitted as he watched Toph working her way through the boulders, creating a new path. When the rumbling of the rocks stopped for a moment he added quietly. "The Avatar is lucky to have you as a teacher."

"Damn straight, he _ would be _," Toph grinned pleased with the praise. It was like a salve for her confidence shaken by a day's worth of bouncing helplessly in the saddle.

"Maybe you should find him," Blue suggested, echoing the thoughts that had been rattling in her head all day.

Toph was considerably cheered by this suggestion before she quickly reminded herself that it was the group that did her wrong not the other way around. Maybe she shouldn't seem so eager. It would give them ideas.

"I'm telling you what. If he comes back with an apology, I'll consider taking him back as a student," she said magnanimously. She really hoped they would come back soon.

"But there is a war going on. Can you afford to wait that long?" Blue asked, his heart beating faster. Everyone was so twisted up about the stupid war.

"The war is not my problem," she shrugged. She had more important things to worry about than some stupid war, over some old stuff. It was irrelevant to her.

"Really?" He sounded truly shocked. The same way Aang and the Water Tribe siblings had when she told them the same.

"Look. All I care about is doing what I'm good at. And I'm really good at this," Toph motioned to the earth around her. "But if we bump into the Avatar, I'll consider it."

"Fair enough," he said. "The road is clear now, there should be some farms just beyond this hill."

He helped her into the saddle and they were bumping again to the rhythm of the steps of the ostrich-horse. Toph wondered if the village had some decent food. She was definitely getting hungry. Dumplings would be good right now. Clearing those boulders took considerable effort.

She almost dozed off, when a sudden jolt made her fully aware again.

"Something is wrong," Blue said, his voice vibrating with tension.

Toph focused on her surroundings, trying to locate the source of his nervousness. She smelled the smoke before they got close enough to hear the screaming. Blue spurred the ostrich-horse into a gallop, which made the shaking even more unbearable. The chaos of smells and screams got louder until the animal came to a halt.

"What happened here?" Blue jumped off the saddle, helping Toph to the ground.

"Fire Nation soldiers." a woman cried in desperation. She knelt on the ground, holding onto two small kids, frightened out of their minds, their little hearts beating like trapped birds. "They raided our farm and set it on fire. They said it was in revenge for what the Blue Spirit took from them. My baby… my baby is inside."

Toph's heart sank. She felt Blue go rigid next to her as the realization hit him too. Fire Nation soldiers... The Blue Spirit… They did this. What seemed like a good fun this morning turned into someone else's nightmare.

Toph could feel the heat of the blaze under her feet, as the earth was crying in rhythm with the woman's wailing. She sounded like a mortally wounded animal. "My baby…"

"I'll get your baby out," Blue's voice was raw.

_ The idiot _. He just couldn't help himself, could he?

"No…" Toph wanted to say, but before the words got out, he ran towards the burning house. Toph followed the fading vibration of his footsteps, until they were engulfed by the roaring fire and she couldn't sense him anymore.

-0-

* * *

Zuko cursed silently as they left the mountain pass behind. Toph was more stubborn than an entire flock of ostrich-horses. How was he supposed to talk her into re-joining the Avatar? And more importantly, even if he could, what was he going to do exactly? He was already unable to match the Avatar and his annoying waterbender on a good day. Add Earthquake-brat to the mix, and Zuko didn't stand a chance. He needed a new plan and fast, because the village was close and who knew what she was going to decide once they got there.

His circling thoughts were disrupted by the alarm-bells ringing in his brain telling him something was wrong. His stomach squeezed with dread, his skin prickled as he surveyed the quiet hillside. Then he knew, suddenly. He sensed the fire before he smelled the smoke. It was not the soothing warmth of a campfire, it was violent, wild, out of control.

"Something is wrong." He kicked the sides of the ostrich-horse, and as they got to the top of the hill, he could see the farmhouse in flames.

The woman outside wailed inconsolably as she explained that Fire Nation soldiers attacked them and set the house on fire.

_ Liar _ , Zuko wanted to yell at the woman - _ because who does this? What kind of people burn the homes of women and children? _ But something deep inside him, that tiny voice that spoke up so foolishly against sacrificing new recruits, whispered that the woman was telling the truth. After all, Zuko had seen it with his own eyes - the burns on Song's legs, the abandoned villages, the scars of destruction on the fields. _ Your people, that's who. _

Did father know? _ Of course. Father is Fire Lord. He knows everything, _ the tiny voice continued mercilessly. Zuko wanted nothing more than for that stupid child to shut up. They were at war, sacrifices had to be made. It was...it _ had _ to be for the greater good.

Zuko wanted to turn around and ride away, forgetting this place - the flames, the misery, the woman with the horrible sobs, the children with their frightened, tear-streaked and snot-stained faces. He shouldn't, he couldn't be a part of this. This wasn't his country, these weren't his people, this wasn't his fight.

But of course, he couldn't walk away. Because this was his own damn fault. Again. If he hadn't robbed the soldiers... _Actions have consequences, Nephew,_ Iroh raised a finger somewhere in his mind, ready to launch into a lecture. _Not now,_ _Uncle_, Zuko brushed the image aside. He needed to focus. The woman's wailing floated back into his consciousness; something about a baby, trapped inside the house. A life to be consumed by a fire Zuko started.

His body made the decision before his mind had a chance to point out that only bad things happened when he tried to save anyone. He ran towards the house and jumped through the window into the brightly burning inferno. The heat was almost unbearable, even for a firebender.

The smoke made his eyes water, and he felt the blind terror rise inside him, like in those days after the Agni kai, _ of which nobody was ever allowed to speak of again _, when even the tiny light of a candle made him throw up in panic.

_ Control, Prince Zuko. It all comes from the breath. Don't fear the fire, don't try to dominate it. Just make it breathe with you. That's right, Nephew… just like that, let it be your ally. _Zuko closed his eyes, thinking of his candle meditation exercises. Breathe. In. Out. The flames grew smaller, the overwhelming heat abated a bit.

Zuko stepped forward, deeper into the house. The way the wooden beams were cracking, it was clear he didn't have much time. He had to do it fast.

_ Zuzu, you are pathetic. Still working on heat control? I could do that perfectly by the time I was seven. You'll never catch up. _ The flames flared up again, licking at Zuko's skin. _ Go away, Azula. _If he just focused on breathing, he could do this.

He reached the kitchen. The baby was crying somewhere behind it. Still alive. Just a few more steps. Breathe. In. Out. Keep focusing.

_ Prince Zuko. How many set are you behind your sister? - Ten, Father. I will work harder. - How many? - Fourteen. - You lost again. - I'm sorry, Father. I'll work harder. _

The voices in his head got louder, breaking the tenuous control he had. The fire roared, pushing him violently back across the room. He fell to his knees. It was hopeless, he couldn't do this. He was too weak.

_ Zuko, my son, remember who you are. Someone who never gives up._

_Zuzu, is this how you die? That's pitiful even for you. _

_ Nephew, your basics, your greatest weapons. It all comes from the breath. _

_ Rise, Prince Zuko. Rise and fight. _

Zuko looked up at the enormous flames, blocking his way to the baby crying now louder behind the fiery curtain. They were too big.

_ Big rock, little rock. Big flame, little flame. That's just an excuse. What matters is the stuff you are made of. Head on, is how I do it. _

Zuko blinked in surprise. He didn't expect firebending advice from an earthbender in his head. But it wasn't like he had anything to lose. If a tiny, blind girl could move a mountainside, the Crown Prince _ (well, former) _ of the Fire Nation had to be able to deal with a simple house fire.

He rose to his feet and glared at the flames. It was just an ordinary fire, lit by some soldiers out of spite. Zuko was forged from the fire of dragons, it burned inside him. He was born to do this. He had to fix this; for the child, for his honor. This was his duty. He took a deep breath, rooted his feet like he saw Toph do it and raised his arms to the side. The curtain of fire opened obediently, just like the rocks did for Toph.

Zuko stepped between walls of flame towering on both sides. He grabbed the baby and jumped through the window of the room, landing carefully outside.

Dazed still, he barely registered the punch Toph greeted him with. "Don't run off like that, you idiot."

The mother grabbed the child out of his arms, holding the baby to her heart. "Ji, my treasure, you are all right. Mommy's got you now," she cried in relief.

Finally, she raised her eyes to Zuko. "I don't know how to thank everything you have done for us. You are a hero."

_ Who knew that a heartfelt gratitude could feel worse than a thousand curses. _ Zuko turned away, feeling like an impostor.

"What are you going to do now?" Toph asked the woman.

"My sister lives not far. We'll go there with the children," she replied, tying the baby on her back and holding her older children by the hand. "We lost everything, but as long as we have each other, we can survive anything."

The children stopped crying, they looked at their mother with hope in their eyes, like she was the rock they could rely on. Looking at the family, Zuko felt his own chest tightening again. His mother had been like this once.

"Here, take this," Zuko gave her the bag of rice and chest filled with coins. "It'll help you on the way."

The woman's eyes widened. "You've already done far too much for us."

_ Not nearly enough _, thought Zuko as he helped Toph into the saddle.

They waved good-bye to the family and rode on towards the village in complete silence. Zuko felt exhausted, his mind replaying on endless loop the fire, the tears, the destruction. Growing up, he was taught that the war was a noble pursuit of a great nation. Fighting was honor and glory. The purpose was to bring on an era of unprecedented prosperity and progress for everyone. But walking the Earth Kingdom, he did not see any of that; he saw violence, bullies, poverty. He saw orphans and broken families.

He couldn't bear this anymore - he had to go home. Back to the palace, where the war meant troops in shiny new uniforms marching off to battle proudly, eager to serve their country. It meant flags flying high in the wind. It was the sound of horns announcing another victory. But even if he went home, could he ever forget what it looked like?

It was getting dark and the village was still nowhere in sight. They lost too many hours with the farm incident. Zuko didn't want to get lost in the wilderness. He pulled on the reins of the ostrich-horse. "We'll make camp."

After unloading their bags, he handed over a few pieces of dried meat to Toph, who was lounging around like nothing could shake her. Zuko envied that.

"Did you have to give her _ all _ of our rice?" she complained chewing with her mouth full.

"I thought you hated my rice. Anyways, we'll get more." Even though he had no idea how. Robbing was a terrible idea, obviously.

Uncle appeared again in his mind, looking at him silently. That was the only way he ever said _ I told you so _. Sometimes Zuko wished he would yell and bang his fists - that would be easier than the silence.

"You did good there, Blue. Saving that kid," Toph said as she stuffed another piece of meat in her mouth.

"I had to fix it." There was no other choice.

"Have you seen anything like this before?" her voice was suddenly quieter, more serious.

Zuko thought of the skeletons he had seen in the air temples. He remembered the lifeless bodies floating in the icy water of the North Pole. "I've seen much worse."

Toph nodded solemnly. "I think it's a good idea to find the Avatar."

This was exactly what Zuko was waiting for, and yet now that she said it, he almost felt disappointment. "Then we'll start looking tomorrow."

Toph looked relieved. She swallowed the last piece of her meat. "And you are right, we can just steal some more food tomorrow."

"No. No more stealing," Zuko replied forcefully.

"Fine. You are right," she admitted and Zuko almost mis-swallowed his meat in surprise. It was the first time she ever conceded a point. "There are other ways to get money."

Zuko did not like the grin on her face. Not one bit. It screamed trouble.

"Like what?" he asked suspiciously.

"I have plans," she shrugged and went on to pick her toes.

"I can't wait." Zuko said flatly. The mention of plans made him think about how he did not have any on his own regarding the Avatar. Maybe he could convince Toph to keep their encounter secret and follow the group from a distance or maybe he could… _ no, not that _..

"Even if we are out of food, could you at least make some fire?" Toph disrupted his thoughts, shivering in an overly dramatic way.

"Sure," Zuko said without thinking, flicking his wrist instinctively. He froze mid-motion when he realized his mistake, but it was too late. The spark already escaped and a small flame was dancing on the dry twigs. _ Idiot _.

The earthbender went rigid for a beat. Then she turned her face towards him, pale green eyes staring at him, right through him.

_ Oh, no. _

He swallowed. "Toph…" he started hesitantly, but the earth already shook around him, sharp rocks encasing him to the neck, pinning him in place with no chance of moving.

"Who are you?" she asked sharply, pulling the rocks tighter on him.

_ Shit. _


	5. Chapter 5

In hindsight, she should have seen the signs _(blind joke fully intended and noted for later use) _all along. After all, his heart made crazy backflips whenever Toph mentioned him not being a bender. She just assumed it was envy. Also, propped against him in the saddle, Toph could feel the heat he radiated like the warm bottle her nanny used to tuck in her bed whenever she had a bad cough on a cold winter night. Then there was the restless, pent-up energy that made him fidget endlessly. And only truly evil people got up voluntarily at the ass-crack of dawn.

_A filthy, stinking firebender. _And what was that about running into a burning house...and getting out alive...Well, no, that wasn't really a firebender thing. They set houses on fire. They didn't save people. Except, this guy; not-Lee-not-Blue did.

"Who are you?" she squeezed the rocks around his neck tighter, making sure the pointy end of a sharp piece was positioned right between his eyes.

He swallowed nervously. "Lee."

"Liar," she snarled. The rock inched closer to his skin. "I can tell you when you lie."

"You can?" he asked in shock.

Toph let out a snort. He wasn't even a challenge. "I don't even need my earthbending to tell. You are a terrible liar. Did you lie about being the Blue Spirit too?"

"No." _True. _

Toph frowned. _How was it possible? _The Blue Spirit was a good guy, a sword-wielding, ass-kicking vigilante who helped the Avatar escape from the Fire Nation. It made no sense.

"But you are a firebender." It wasn't a question, it was a statement. The undeniable proof was right in front of them, in the form of obliviously dancing flames.

"Yes," he admitted.

"I don't understand. If you are a firebender, why do you need to play dress-up and run around with swords instead of just using your bending?"

"It's complicated," he sighed. _Also true. _Maybe there was a story worth listening to. But Toph could not trust this stranger, not after all the lies. She still didn't even know his name.

"What's your name?" Toph asked again. "And don't even try to lie."

"Zuko." _True. _Wait, she had heard this name before.

"Are you the jerk with the pony-tail?" she exclaimed.

"Who told you that?" he retorted angrily. She could feel the sparks spitting out of his mouth. That was kind of impressive. Toph wondered if she could spit rocks somehow if the situation called for it. That would be a neat move.

Blue-Zuko continued his indignant grumble. "I've never had a _pony_tail." _True. _

Maybe it was a coincidence. Maybe Zuko was a popular name in the Fire Nation. She vaguely remembered from her lessons that someone important in their stupid royal family was called like that. It's like when King Kuei adopted Bosco and the idiot-half of Earth Kingdom, starry-eyed about anything royal was suddenly naming their first-borns after a bear.

"Sokka said otherwise," she replied, sure that the Water Tribe boy was talking about a different Zuko.

_Or maybe not. _

"Boomerang boy?" Blue-Zuko huffed angrily. "Tell him that it was a phoenix-tail and if my memories are correct, Water Tribe is the one with the ponytail."

_Wow, boys sure were touchy about their hairstyles. _

"It's a warrior's wolf-tail." Toph felt honour-bound to defend Sokka's perky little updo. _Yes, she did test it with her own hands. It was perky. _Anyways, the situation was clear. There was no mistake. This Zuko was the same as ponytail-jerk. Which also meant…

"So you don't deny that you have been trying to capture the Avatar?"

_Silence. _An even more unsettling thought occured to Toph.

"Were you using me to get to Aang?" she yelled.

_More silence. _But his heart beat like the thunderous drum-roll at the start of a wrestling match. That was all the answer Toph needed. She turned on her heels.

"Toph, let me explain…" he pleaded.

"There is nothing to explain," she hissed.

She was an idiot who almost accidentally befriended the enemy. She nearly walked him right up to the Avatar. Well, nothing like a bucket of cold betrayal to help her see clearly who her real friends were. _Hint: not the jerk stuck in the rocks _.

She would not be used this way. Whatever his reasons were, this just wasn't right. Ignoring his increasingly desperate calls, she walked away.

-0-

* * *

Section 342 of the Fire Nation Navy Handbook read: _"Captured combatants under enemy interrogation must remain silent. If coerced, replies to be kept as short as possible." _ Zuko knew that. He memorized the entire Agni-forsaken Handbook by the second week of his banishment, resolute to keep his ship in absolute compliance with the rules. Now, he also understood the reason.

He was on track to talk himself out of this hole, until he had to lose his temper about the stupid pony-tail, like the predictable idiot he was.

Why was he so touchy about it anyways? Fine, it was the one symbol of royalty he was allowed to keep. The one tiny bit of _formerly-Crown-now-just-simply-banished _Prince Zuko. It was the hair his mother liked to comb over and over, humming as she worked the strands, until it was soft and shiny, like the finest silk. When he closed his eyes, he could sometimes feel the shadow of her fingers tantalizingly close to his scalp. But it was just hair. He chopped it off with his own hands and it even made him feel lighter for a brief moment.

The phoenix-tail didn't matter anymore. Certainly, not worth being trapped in a blasting hole, with no way out. His legs were clamped down, his arms held tight against his side by the crushing weight. Deprived of any range of motion, he couldn't bend.

He still had his breath of fire, but it was completely useless against the rocks. He simply couldn't get the right angle, no matter which way he craned his neck.

Zuko groaned in frustration. His situation was absolutely hopeless.

_If you keep calm, Nephew, you will find a way out, _Uncle-in-his-mind advised.

Zuko inhaled slowly and tried to go deep within himself, contemplating his place in the universe, like he learned as a child. _Courage meant being mindful of his death, so it had no power over him. Everything had to die and those who accepted this were able to live in accordance with the paths of loyalty and filial duty…face peril with dignity... _

Agni, this was not working.

"Heeeeelp," Zuko yelled, swallowing his pride.

The response came immediately, in the sound of heavy footsteps. Maybe the universe heard his desperate cry. Someone came to rescue him… Maybe Uncle was near. _Oh, please, be Uncle. _

A hairy foot appeared in Zuko's line of vision. His heart sank. As usual, the universe played a cruel joke at his expense. It was the stolen ostrich-horse.

The animal looked at him with detached curiosity, exhaling his stinky breath right in front of Zuko's nose. A rough tongue darted out and licked his face, covering him in disgusting ostrich-horse slob. Karma was a crueller bitch than certain family members who shall not be named on account of having promised Mother solemnly that he would not call names and make every effort to get along.

After surviving Zhao's assassination attempt, the cold of the North Pole, the perilous journey on a make-shift raft, being hunted like an animal by his sister, he would die here in this hole; all alone, covered in ostrich-horse spit, captured by a blind, 12-year old earthbending-prodigy brat. He started laughing hysterically, because the only alternative was crying.

And that was a lesson he learnt quickly after Mother left. Father made it known that crying was not an appropriate response to any pain or emotion he felt. He tried to bottle it up inside, until Azula, in a moment of uncharacteristic generosity tipped him off that if he was lucky, he could get away with manic laughter or incoherent yelling instead. They spent an entire afternoon in front of the big mirror in her room, experimenting with pitch, cadence and rhythm trying to copy Father's majestic cackle. It was one of the last good memories he had of her.

"At least things can't get worse," he told the ostrich-horse, trying to look for the silver-sandwich. The beast shook her head with a neigh, just to contradict him one last time before his inevitable and untimely demise.

_Scratch that. _Things could always, always get worse. He should have understood that by now. Because sure, it was bad to be stuck in a hole, trapped by a blind kid, covered in ostrich-horse drool. But being stuck in a hole, trapped by a blind kid, covered in ostrich-horse drool _and _have a saber-tooth moose lion cub take an interest in you was infinitely worse.

Objectively speaking, the cub was adorable as it came closer, sniffing Zuko mistaking him for an exciting new toy. But everyone knew that cute little saber-tooth moose-lion cubs had big, frightening saber-tooth moose-lion mothers. And mothers could do all kinds of wild things to protect their kids.

Like _walk out without an explanation and never to come back _kind of wild. _Like grand-fathers mysteriously dying _… no he couldn't go there. Mother would never. It was a coincidence.

At least, his death would be swift. It was preferable to be killed by a wild beast than to die slowly of exposure or thirst. But for sure, there was no more undignified death on record in the entire history of the royal family.

He'd be a footnote on those fancy family-tree scrolls. Prince Zuko, brother of Fire Lord Azula (_ even saying it mentally made him choke on the words _), died before reaching the age of majority in an unfortunate saber-tooth moose-lion incident. They might magnanimously call it a hunting accident to embellish the truth about the passing of the black koala-sheep of the family.

He'd be the winner of the most pathetic royal death, a competition nobody ever wanted to compete in. Worse than Prince Kanzu - or was it Zendo? _Azula would know for sure _ \- who died hitting his head on the doorframe. Or Princess Azina who famously succumbed to an infected bite by a spider-monkey she took home as a pet against her father's warnings. At least, he would finally get first prize in something.

"Go away," he growled at the cub angrily, sparks escaping from his lips.

The cub let out a frightened whimper. _Shit. That was stupid. _

Deep rumbling in the woods announced the approach of the mama moose-lion. Zuko steeled himself. There was nobody to watch and give account, but he was determined to die like a prince, with a last defiant scowl at fate. He may have been beaten, but he was never broken and that had to count for something. At least it was going to be over - the hunt, the shame, the guilt. He was exhausted.

_Sorry, Uncle, I hope you know that I never gave up, I just reached the end of the path, _he thought. There were no other good-byes to make. Nobody else would miss him.

The saber-tooth moose-lion mother growled at him, eyes red with anger, white tusks glistening in the sun. Zuko looked at the light - _Agni, give me strength _. The animal charged. Encased in the rocks, Zuko could feel every thundering footstep, vibrating deep inside his bones.

The beast was only a few steps away, when a wall of rocks emerged from the ground, knocking the moose-lion back. The cub ran to his mother in alarm, nudging her with its nose. The mother rose to her feet with an angry grunt and tapped her feet. Large rocks were hurled in her direction from somewhere behind Zuko's back. The animal backed away. With a disgruntled roar, she decided that he was not worth the trouble and disappeared behind the tree-line with her cub in tow.

Zuko let out a sigh of relief. A shadow cast over him, and lifting his head, he could see the silhouette of his saviour. The brat came back.

"Toph..." he started hoping to explain.

"I've thought about it and," she interrupted, holding up her hand. "I realized that it would be a shame to leave you behind..."

Zuko nodded in agreement. After all, he did jump into a river to save her life. Honor required that he'd be repaid in kind. A life for a life.

"...when I can find so much better uses for you," Toph's lips curved into an evil grin.

Zuko tensed up again. This was not good.

It was the type of grin he was intimately and painfully acquainted with. The type of grin Azula would have on her face before she casually set his bed on fire. This grin did not promise anything good. Maybe undignified death by angry saber-tooth moose-lion mothers was preferable to whatever that grin meant.

"So here are the terms…" Toph crossed her arms on her chest.

Zuko closed his eyes in defeat. No good deed ever went unpunished. It was time to pay for his.


	6. Chapter 6

His pounding heartbeat echoed against the ground; Toph felt the rising panic in the quickening of its pace. It fluttered against her footsteps like a trapped bird's wings in a cage. She didn't turn back. Not then, not yet. It wasn't until the vibrations faded and silence set in that Toph started to reconsider. She was in this mess because she had walked away from the group in her first anger. Was there something she missed?

She lined up the facts. He was a firebender. He was the Blue Spirit. He lied. He saved lives. _Her _life. He was trying to capture Aang, but also freed him from captivity. It didn't make sense. Then again, she had never met a firebender before; well, not really. Which was an important detail. How was she supposed to teach Aang to fight the Fire Lord if she herself didn't _know_? And now that she got offered an opportunity on a silver platter, it did seem foolish to just walk away. So she turned back.

He was right where she left her. _Firebenders couldn't get out of holes if they were pinned down by rock pillars_ was already a useful information. Toph stashed it away in her mind as she swatted away the saber-tooth moose lion and her curious cub.

So what other weak points did they have? She had to find out.

"So here are the terms," she lifted a finger. "Number one: You will fight me."

"Why would I want to do that?" came the confused reply.

"Because you are in a hole and I can set whatever terms I want. And I never fought a firebender before."

"You want me as a sparring partner?" he asked a bit incredulously.

"More like a practice dummy," Toph said confidently. She hadn't seen him bend yet, but she did not doubt her own abilities. Nobody ever bested her.

"Toph, this isn't funny. I will not fight you."

He sounded exactly like those clueless adults who tried to tell her she was unreasonable.

Toph was furious. "Why? Because I am a helpless little blind girl?"

Everyone was so touchy about fighting her. She sometimes wished she was a big, muscly guy, who could go around, pick fights and be taken seriously.

"No. That's not why," he protested. At least he did mean that.

His voice took on an edge of desperation. "Look - fire is different... You can get ...hurt."

_Hm, a firebender who worried about burning people. Interesting. But also very annoying._

"Let me worry about that," she dismissed his concern. She was willing to take the risk to learn something new.

"Number two: you will be my valet," Toph raised a second finger. He would have to do all the chores if he wanted to get out of the hole. It's not like he ever asked for help, but it was better to make it crystal-clear from the start.

"Your _valet_?" He spat out the word like it was disgusting, overcooked cabbage.

"It's a kind of servant..." Toph explained in case he wasn't familiar with the term.

"I know what a valet is," he interrupted. The irritation in his voice made Toph smile. She managed to poke a sore spot. She would have to remember to dig around some more.

"Three: when we find the Avatar, you will surrender yourself."

He would be her gift to them, like an owl-cat bringing home a meadow vole. A sign of goodwill towards the group, to show that she was ready to put the disagreements behind her.

_Silence_. "I can't do that."

"I guess you prefer to die in this hole," Toph shrugged, putting on her bluff-face.

"Maybe," he replied without conviction.

Toph tapped her foot impatiently. "I'm waiting… but my patience is thin."

He sighed in defeat. "I...I accept your terms."

Toph smirked. She expected as much. Thrusting her arms upwards, she yanked him out of the hole - carefully so as not to injure him, but not too gently.

"Let's start then," she cracked her knuckles. This was going to be fun. There was nothing like a good fight to clear her mind.

"Right here and now?"

"Yeah, I want to stretch my muscles."

"Just as soon as I get some feeling back into my legs," he grumbled, sitting on the ground.

"Here, let me help," Tohp raised her fingers, poking his legs with tiny stone-needles.

"Ouch…" he yelped.

"I hear that acupuncture can help," she clarified with a wicked grin.

"You don't exactly have a light touch of a healer," he growled.

Toph shrugged. She could be gentle when she wanted to, but right now, she was not in a gentle mood. There was a rustling of materials as kept rubbing his legs.

"It does feel better," he admitted after a pause.

"You are welcome." Toph got into her starting stance. "Come on, Firebug. I'm waiting."

She wiggled her toes, strengthening the vibrations so she could observe better. His stance was wider than an earthbender's, but similarly rooted to the ground. He made a series of fast jabs with his fist. Toph could feel a swoosh of warmth that landed harmlessly at a safe distance from her foot and fizzled out.

"What was that? A butterfly fart?" she asked angrily. This was unacceptable. "Again, like you mean it."

The vibrations became sharper as his chi flared up. He repeated the movement, this time with more force. It swooshed hotter and faster. Toph blocked the fireball with a rock-barrier. It was too easy.

"Try again," she told him. This time instead of blocking the fire, she pulled the ground from under his feet. The flame snuffed out as he fell on his butt gracelessly. Toph puffed out in frustration. Boring.

"Show me a different move."

Zuko kicked in front, producing a larger stream of flame. It travelled in a predictable straight line, licking the stone barrier she made to block it.

After an hour of practice, she had a solid grasp of all the basic attacks he used. There were fast jabs of fireballs, more powerful kicks and he could make a fire-shield. She also noticed that frustration and anger made his flame burn hotter, but his movements became sloppier. Blocking wasn't too hard, but breaking his root mid-movement was her best offence.

It was not much of a fight; whenever he attacked, Toph simply pulled the ground from under his feet or even better, knocked him over with a stone-column. There was only so much entertainment value in making him fly in different angles. In other words, it was incredibly dull. Worse than the Earth Rumble opponents.

"This is pathetic," Toph hissed in frustration, hoping he would rise to her bait with some real fire.

Instead of provoking his anger, she could feel his chi recoil, and his inner fire dim, like he just gave up. _What was his problem? Something was really messed-up with this guy._

"I'm sorry to disappoint," he croaked. His voice was raw like an open wound.

Toph crossed her arms over her chest. "You know what is your problem?"

"You mean other than all the bruises?" He panted, out of breath.

"You play by other people's rules," Toph observed. "But I also know that you can do better, because I've seen it."

"Aren't you blind?"

Toph laughed. Even as beaten down as he was, he still had the guts to make blind jokes. She could respect that.

She also had an idea.

"I want the other guy, not whatever this mess is."

"What other guy?" he asked confused. "There is only me."

"I want Blue. Put on the mask." Toph ordered.

"I have no idea what you want to achieve," he protested.

"I said put it on." She stomped her foot for emphasis, making the ground shake around them.

"Fine," he said in a voice that made it clear he disagreed.

She heard him shuffle around the bag, the clinking of metal as he grabbed his weapons. One moment she could feel the vibrations of him kneeling, the next, he disappeared. Toph tried to widen her field of sensation with bending. Nothing. He vanished.

She listened to the rustling of the leaves, the creaking of the branches. He was up there, on the trees where she couldn't feel him. A twig snapped to her left. Toph sent a huge boulder in the direction of the sound, but didn't hit anything. Instead, a blade appeared out of nowhere, hovering close to her neck. Blue was right behind her.

Toph grinned. "Now we are in business. I knew you had it in you, Firebug."

When, he lowered his blades, she knocked him over with a fast stomp. Just a friendly reminder to make sure he remembered who the boss was.

-0-

* * *

Zuko clutched his side, breathing raggedly. His ribs were going to be purple-bruised without a doubt. He had fought earthbenders before, but nobody like her. Toph had amazing precision and control - her punches were never too small or too big. They hurt just enough to knock the air out of Zuko, depriving him of much-needed fuel for his fire.

In any case, he kept his fire subdued, he didn't want to risk hurting her, because how low would you have to sink to burn a kid, even accidentally? Yes, she was an annoying brat, a walking natural disaster and packed a punch like an angry komodo rhino, but she was just a child.

He wasn't trying hard enough, true, but he also knew without doubt that he could never defeat her even if he tried. It was like those humiliating sparring sessions with Azula all over again. He was pathetic, just like she said. Putting on a blue mask would not change the failure he was.

He slid on the mask anyway, because this was what his life came to - he was taking orders from 12-year olds. He grabbed his swords and watched her through the slits of the mask, flexing her toes against the ground, bending her arms at her elbows, getting ready to chuck another rock at him.

_You play by other people's rules. _Well, Zuko followed the rules as best he could, but the Blue Spirit was free to make up his own. After all, the Blue Spirit did surprise her before.

Toph could only sense him as long as he was connected with the ground, so he jumped on the closest tree and disappeared among the branches. He observed silently as she tried to locate him flexing her soles against the ground, shifting them around. He tied a long rope on a branch, and silently crept over to the next tree, until he was right above her.

When she gave up on her bending and started listening instead, Zuko pulled on the rope, snapping a twig, and using her distraction to land behind her, blades pointed at her throat.

She grinned pleased. "Now we are in business. I knew you had it in you, Firebug."

Her praise felt ridiculously good. Zuko lowered his blades with a pleased smile. Maybe he wasn't completely useless. His momentary lack of concentration landed him on his backside again.

"Ouch, what was that for?" he complained half-heartedly.

"To knock some sense into your thick skull. Even I can see that it is a big mess in there and I'm blind."

Zuko scowled at her, but she was of course impervious to his scowls.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"It's simple. Let Blue bend."

_No_. The Blue Spirit was not a firebender. He was a prankster, a rascal, a mean spirit. He was everything the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation was not supposed to be.

_But you are not the Crown Prince, are you, Zuzu? You are just an outlaw._

"I can't."

"Well, why not?" she asked.

The Blue Spirit was dangerous.

"I don't want to hurt you," he said truthfully.

Toph scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Tell me, Firebug, which one of us spent most of the past hour rolling on the ground?"

"Me," Zuko admitted reluctantly.

"So worry about yourself. I can handle it. Let Blue bend." She said firmly. "What would he do?"

Zuko took a deep breath under the mask. The Blue Spirit wouldn't attack harder, he'd attack smarter. He would use the terrain to confuse her. He would bend in ways that would make the imperial bending masters gasp in outrage. He would throw fireballs as distraction, he would twist around the forms and make his flame curve, he'd target the rocks under Toph's feet to put her off balance. The Blue Spirit would not want to overpower, when he could outsmart. He would see it as a game. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to let him bend.

Zuko smiled. "He'd tell you to stop talking so much."

Without warning, he did a fast, circular kick.

_Prince Zuko, that's not a regular move. - But it works. -It's most aberrant. An abomination. The Fire Lord would never approve._

The fire made the rock she was standing on explode. She let out a startled cry, and for the first time since they started the practice, she landed on her back. She retaliated with a quick succession of rock balls.

The fight was back on.

After a few - much more enjoyable rounds - Toph decided to call it a day. She stretched out on the ground with a satisfied grin, and reminded Zuko of the terms of their deal. Zuko refrained from pointing out that it did not in any way change the former chore distribution between them.

He made fire, fetched water and divided up the rest of the smoked meat.

Staring into the flames he asked the question that was on his mind the whole day,

"Where did you learn to bend? I've never seen anyone earthbend the way you do."

Toph let out a small chuckle.

"When you are born a little blind girl, people make a lot of assumptions what your limits are. My parents got me a teacher hoping that I could learn enough earthbending to help me move around. He taught me only a few basic moves, assuming I could never learn anything more advanced. So I learnt from the badger-moles."

_Was she joking? She had to be joking. _

"Badger-moles?"

"They are the original earth-benders. And they are blind like me, so we understood each other perfectly. When you are blind, you don't see the limits. And that's a good thing. Where did you learn firebending?"

Her unseeing eyes unnerved him. Lying was not an option, so he decided to tell the truth or as close as he could without revealing the last of his secrets.

"Back home. Everyone in my family are exceptional firebenders. My uncle, my father, my sister are all prodigies. It came so easy for them, and I couldn't even make a spark until I was seven. So it was expected from me to pick it up fast, but…"

His insides twisted thinking of the crushing expectations, the almost unbearable stress of those lessons.

"You couldn't do it the way they wanted you to," Toph guessed.

Firebending was a source of constant anxiety and shame. No matter how hard he tried, it never was good enough.

"Yeah, I struggled a lot. They said I was doing it all wrong. My form was sloppy, I screwed up all the sequences."

A part of him expected her to mock his inadequacy, like everyone always did - well except Uncle - but she just nodded with a neutral expression.

"You were a turtle-duck and they tried to teach you fly instead of swimming."

Being compared to a turtle-duck was maybe not the most flattering metaphor, but it was a strangely fitting description.

"Something like that," he agreed drily.

"So how come Blue can fight different?"

_Use your surroundings, Prince Zuko. Know your opponent. You don't fight a serpent or a tigerdillo the same way. A swordmaster knows when to evade and when to strike. - Yes, Master Piandao_

"He was taught to adapt."

"You are fine, Blue. As long as you remember who you are."

"A turtle-duck?" he asked sarcastically.

"You said it." Toph grinned "Not me."

"I don't think a family of sea-hawks will ever want a turtle-duck."

"Then you need to find a family who appreciates turtle-ducks."

_If only it was so simple._

"Don't you wish you family accepted you?"

"Of course, I do," Toph admitted. Suddenly she looked so young, so vulnerable. "I miss them. I want them to love me. But the real me, not some picture I paint for them."

He wished he knew what that meant anymore. The real him was becoming more blurry with each day.

Silence settled between them. She picked her toes quietly, he stared into the flames.

"I'm turning in," she said with a big yawn once all the dirt was gone. "Back or stomach?"

"What?"

"Do you sleep on your back or your stomach? So I can shackle you," Toph clarified.

Zuko's heart sank. He had hoped that they were done with this whole prisoner charade.

"Is that really necessary?"

"For now." Her response was short, but not unfriendly.

He had no more fight in him, so he simply laid on the ground, and curled up on his left side.

"Side then."

Toph bent stone shackles around his wrists and ankles.

"Good night," she said before she disappeared in her stone tent.

"Good night," he muttered.

Zuko stared into the starry night. He jiggled his arms and legs. The shackles weren't exactly tight. He could have gotten out of them easily if he wanted to. But he didn't want to. His captivity was an opportunity. Toph wasn't the only one learning from it; he was too. He already had more breakthroughs in one day, than for the last year, since his bending plateaued. And maybe even more extraordinarily, for the first time in his life, firebending was fun.


	7. Chapter 7

Toph woke up to the warm rays of the sun tickling her toes. The sounds and sensations of the world filtered into her consciousness slowly. It was a usual mix of birds singing, breeze rustling the leaves, the gentle vibrations of critters scurrying through the undergrowth. And then there was something else; a monotonous tapping of a stick against a rock that didn't quite fit into the usual morning sounds of the forest.

_Right, her prisoner was fidgeting_.

Toph - still half asleep - flicked a small pebble at his head. "Can you stop that? How long have you been up?"

"Ouch," he yelped indignantly. "Since dawn."

"Dawn?" Toph repeated incredulously. There was something deeply wrong with the guy.

"It's a firebender thing," he said defensively. It was at least an explanation why the Fire Nation was evil. Toph would have waged a war on the world too if she never got to sleep in.

"So why didn't you get up?" Surely, there were more productive ways to spend the morning than disturbing others with squirming.

"You shackled me to the ground." He sounded rather disgruntled about it.

"Don't tell me you couldn't have gotten out of that if you wanted to," snorted Toph. She made sure that the shackles were flimsy and loose. She was curious what he would do. Also, she really didn't want to be woken up in case he had to use what Sokka liked to call the "facilities".

"It was my impression that you didn't want me to," Zuko muttered.

"You are still playing by other people's rules." Toph shook her head in disappointment. She had hoped that Zuko would take a clue from their sparring session and start behaving more like his free-spirited alter ego than this tight-laced good boy.

Permission received, there was a flash of heat, and the shackles were broken. He sat up, stretched and sat back on his heels, eerily still. _Slow breaths, steady calm heartbeat._ It was freaky. And boring.

"What are you doing?"

"Meditating. We soak up the sun's energy to strengthen our chi. Early morning is the best time for firebending practice," he explained in a leave-me-alone kind of voice. It was pretty much the only voice he had.

Toph cracked her knuckles.

"Well, as luck would have it, anytime is the best time for earthbending. And since I'm already up, how about we work up an appetite before breakfast?"

"The thing is...there is no breakfast, Toph. We are out of food," he sighed mournfully.

That was definitely a set-back.

"Then let's head to the closest place for supplies."

"We also have no money," Zuko added with a sigh.

_Yes, because you gave it all away, in a bout of generosity_, Toph thought. His constant negativity was starting to get on her nerves.

"Won't be a problem," she smirked confidently. She had plans for these kind of things. After all, she had to use her wits to put together the entry fee for the Earth Rumble championships too. There were lots of ways to make money if one knew how to grasp the opportunities. And the Beifongs have built a business empire on this knowledge for generations. "Let's go."

"Uhhm…" Zuko cleared his throat, like she was supposed to know what that sound was supposed to mean. Waving his arms around in her general direction in a frustrating blur did nothing to help clarify the situation either.

"I have no idea what you are pointing at," Toph said with annoyance. _Didn't he realize that she was blind? _

"Your...erm...hair. Maybe you could… " he sputtered.

"What?" snapped Toph. _Something was wrong with her hair?_

"I don't know… brush it? We don't want to draw a lot of attention."

He sounded almost like Mother. Toph raked her fingers through her hair twice. "Better?"

_Silence_. Maybe her hair was really that bad? On most days Toph didn't care. It's not like she ever had to look in a mirror. And in the fighting arena rough looks were a bonus. Or so she was told by the thickskulls. But since she was out in the world, the question started to nag her just a tiny bit. _What if she was ugly?_ Not that she knew what that meant, but she imagined it was like how a ragged boulder felt compared to a smooth marble.

"Actually, let me...?" he offered hesitantly.

"Fine. Since you are my valet anyways, you might as well make yourself useful." Toph leaned back. _Ordering someone was not the same as asking for help, was it?_

His fingers felt rough against her scalp. He pulled on her locks clumsily as he tried to untangle them. There was a pang of something deep inside Toph's belly as she remembered her mother's soft touch. Poppy personally helped her get ready every morning; brushing her hair, tying the sash around her waist, washing her skin with rice water. Whether the pang was called regret or longing, it sucked, so Toph refused to examine it more closely. Emotions could make you soft and malleable, but she preferred to be a rock. Hard and unmovable, just like a rugged boulder. Those packed a good punch. She focused her attention back to Zuko's very-unlike-mother's fingers twisting her hair.

"Where did you learn about girls' hair?" she asked. This was a new dimension of her companion, no, her _valet._

"I was forced to play with my sister and her friends," he admitted grumpily. So Blue had a sister. That was also new information. So far, he only ever talked about his uncle.

"Well, you do have stone hands," Toph complained.

"Funny, coming from an earthbender," he noted drily, but made an effort to be more gentle.

"Where is your sister now?" she asked curiously.

His heartbeat quickened with - _what was it? Fear, apprehension, worry? _

"I'm not sure." The reply came after a long beat. It was true. _Or at least rue enough._

He put the last pins in place and announced, "We are done."

They rode the short distance to the village in silence. Toph was wrapped in a gloomy cloud of homesickness and Zuko was his usual grim self. The pangs of hunger was an extra irritation that dampened their mood.

They were in luck. It was market day; the hustle and bustle offered a welcome distraction from unpleasant thoughts. Toph soaked in the sounds and sensations. Markets also attracted exactly the type of people Toph was looking for: the hustlers, the cheaters, the scammers. She wandered around the stalls until the unmistakable noises of excitement and disappointment told her she found what she was looking for.

She whispered instructions into Zuko's ear and cut off his protests reminding him that valets did not argue with their employers. He hissed back that employers usually paid their staff, but lacking a better plan, he acquiesced.

Toph stepped forward towards the card stall, putting on a show of stumbling and bumping into people. It was the poor-little-blind-girl-act and people bought it without fail.

"Can I try my luck?" she asked innocently.

"Do you have money?"

"No, but I have this," she held out a jade bracelet. It was an expensive piece with excellent craftsmanship, or so her mother had informed her.

There was unmasked greediness in the man's voice as he extended his invitation. "Take a seat, little bird."

-0-

Zuko leaned against the wall behind the card stall, pulling the brim of his hat over his eyes, hiding his face as much as he could. The crowd made him uncomfortable. Azula peppered (_flooded?_) the Earth Kingdom with wanted posters of Zuko and Uncle Iroh (_come on, Zuzu - isn't it good to feel wanted finally?)_ and even though his hair changed, his scar remained very recognizable.

Toph was drawing too much unwelcome attention by her miraculous winning streak, which she accompanied by exaggerated displays of joyful surprise. It was like watching the Ember Island Players butcher a scene from Love Among Dragons all over, dying of second-hand embarrassment.

"You care to guess again?" The card guy tapped his fingers impatiently. His lack of enthusiasm was understandable; there was an ever growing pile of coins in front of the blind girl he had thought was going to be an easy prey.

"Sure. It's my lucky day after all," she intoned with the fakest sweet smile.

Zuko glanced at the cards from his vantage position. He tapped his foot lightly eight times.

Toph's scratched her head. "I'm thinking of saying twelve, because I'm twelve, but then seven is my lucky number. You know what? I think it's an eight."

"Are you sure you don't want to go for your lucky number instead?" the card guy asked.

"I'm sure. There is this little voice inside me that just keeps whispering eight," Toph grinned cheekily.

"She won again. She must be a truth-seer..." The amazed murmur went through the crowd.

"I rubbed a badger-mole's balls for good luck," Toph announced loudly. "Maybe you should try it."

A giggle rippled through the crowd. Card-man's eyes flashed with hatred.

Zuko was on edge. This was not going to end well. They needed to get out of here - right now. He cleared his throat, and when that failed to draw Toph's attention, he walked towards an abandoned alley, making sure to stomp his feet deliberately so she could not miss it.

She appeared soon enough, hands in pockets, a furious expression on her face.

"What's wrong with you? I was not finished, Zu-" she hissed.

"Don't call me that here," he interrupted. "Yes you were. We have enough money now. We should go," Zuko grabbed her arm and pulled her towards a fruit stand.

Only when the merchant asked him what he wanted did he realize that it was full of stuff he did not recognize. The Earth Kingdom had very different produce from the Fire Nation. Also, it's not like he had much idea how to cook anyways. Finally, he spotted something familiar.

"We'll take four mangoes," Zuko told the seller, absent-mindedly paying the two silver pieces for the fruits.

"I hate mangoes…" Toph said loudly.

"You are drawing attention," Zuko whispered and pulled her along. She must have done some earthbending trick, because she felt heavy like a bag of lead or a particularly stubborn ostrich horse.

"You are drawing more attention by overpaying like a dumbstick instead of driving a bargain," Toph retorted. Zuko glanced back at the mango merchant's slick smirk and realized that she probably did have a point. Even if he was in a hurry, he had to blend in and bargain like the rest of the customers. Like Uncle always did, which used to drive Zuko crazy. He wished he paid more attention to the old man, instead of complaining about wasting precious time.

"Let's get some rice," he headed down the street hoping that for once Toph would follow his lead.

Of course, she didn't. She stopped and sniffed, turning her nose in the direction of a stand where a woman was steaming dough.

"Let's stop for dumplings instead," she suggested.

"We should be careful not to spend too much," Zuko objected. Her winnings would tide them over for two weeks even if they stretched the money.

"Don't worry. There is plenty of more where that came from. And your rice sucks. I want dumplings," she insisted.

The smell _was_ enticing. Zuko's stomach growled in agreement, so he agreed.

They munched on the steaming noodles happily, as they continued walking through the market, looking for a rice stand and maybe some salted meat. It was the easiest thing to carry long distances.

Toph insisted on buying a lychee lemonade, picking a lucky fish (_which was unsurprisingly unlucky_) and stopping to listen to a group of vagabonds dancing and singing an annoying tune about some secret tunnel. It was worse than music night on the ship, and that was saying something. Toph clapped loudly when the song was over and threw a copper piece at the performers.

She walked away whistling the stupid tune. She was worse to shop with than Uncle. Zuko felt like screaming even though it was a bad idea, because sometimes screaming meant smoking nostrils and spitting sparks and well, that would surely get him caught. Instead, he took a deep breath and started reciting the names of the 3073 islands of the Fire Nation. He got to Dovetail Bay before he felt safe to open his mouth again.

They barely took three steps when she got distracted again - this time by another scammer playing a shell game.

"Ooh, that's my favourite…" she exclaimed.

"I'm not helping. We got lucky the previous time," Zuko whispered angrily. _Dragon Cove. Eclipse Beach. Ember Island. Emerald Cape. _

"Well, I don't need your help on this one," she shrugged. "If you are such a wimp, why don't you go and do the rest of the shopping and come back when you are done."

That sounded like a terrible idea.

"Toph…"

"I didn't ask your opinion. Go, do the shopping, Valet," she ordered loudly.

Zuko noticed that some of the people started to stare at them. Maybe letting her play was a terrible idea, but arguing publicly was even worse.

"As you wish, my Lady," he replied through gritted teeth, accompanying his cold words with a quick, but impeccably executed bow. Not that she saw it, but it was a good way to keep his face hidden from view until he disappeared in the crowd.

Zuko wandered around in search of the rice stand, fuming internally. Toph was reckless and insolent. It was madness to stay with her, no matter what "terms" they agreed to. After all, wasn't she the one cheating people and encouraging him to break rules? Maybe he was meant to run away.

"Would you like Jasmine, purple, black, wild or Wuchang?" a merchant asked.

"What?" Zuko realized that he was indeed in front of a rice stand staring at the grains. "Just rice."

"There is no "just rice" here - we only have the finest selection of Earth Kingdom. The purple variety goes best with poached platypus-bear egg, wild rice can do wonders for virility, though I'm sure that a fine young man like yourself has…"

Whaaaaat? _Firefly Island, Firestone Bay, Flaming Rock… _

"I'll take the Jasmine." It sounded like something Uncle would choose.

"Excellent choice," smiled the merchant starting to fill a bag with a tiny scoop.

Zuko waited impatiently, tuning out the merchant's chatter about the different (rather dodgy) uses of rice. Instead, he listened to the hurly-burly of people bargaining and exchanging, until his ears picked up a conversation far more interesting than rice-ology.

"...by the Avatar." It was the woman from the Secret-Tunnel-troupe.

Her companion interrupted, "The Avatar is probably inside the walls of Ba Sing Se by now, if he has any sense.

"Nonsense, I heard he was…" she replied. The end of her sentence was drowned in the sound of screams, pottery crashing, fruit carts turning over. The ground was shaking which could only mean one thing.

Zuko ran towards the shell-game stall where he left the 12-year-old epicenter. The shaking subsided, and he spotted Toph trapped inside a wooden cage, surrounded by a crowd.

"This girl is a rascal. She's cheating, you all saw it," the card-man yelled pointing at her.

"You just suck at playing cards," Toph growled back, shaking the bars of her cage.

"I agree. She manipulated my game too," the shell-game guy agreed.

"The girl is a street urchin," added someone from the crowd.

"I think she works with an accomplice. A shady guy too," a woman's agitated voice joined in.

"There he is," yelled one of the men who had witnessed Zuko's argument with Toph earlier.

That was his cue. He dashed down among the stalls, knocking over a cabbage cart to slow down his pursuers.

"MY CABBAGES," the merchant's pained howl echoed among the houses.

Zuko jumped in an alleyway, climbed the walls and disappeared among the rooftops. He ducked behind a clothes-line covered with large sheets and waited motionless for the footsteps of his pursuers to die down. An owl-cat appeared from inside the house. It inspected Zuko with a hiss and a loud meow.

"Sshhhhh," Zuko shushed the animal. "I've had a rough day."

The owl-cat blinked its green eyes. It walked closer, rubbed itself against Zuko's leg and curled up in his lap.

Zuko sank his palm into the animal's soft fur. "Tell me, kitty, what is the right thing to do?"

The owl-cat purred in response.

"That's what I thought, too," Zuko sighed heavily. Animals never sugar-coated these things.


	8. Chapter 8

The frantic activity of the marketplace faded into the background as Toph focused solely on the tiny pebble bouncing on the ground. The impact was almost imperceptible, but if her seismic sense had its limits, she hadn't found them yet. This pebble was no exception - it could not be a match for her bending. She followed the movements as the scammer bounced the tiny rock under the shells at a maddening pace. It landed on the left.

"Ready?" His voice was strained like he lost his patience five rounds ago when he realized that Toph's winning streak could not be an accident. He just couldn't figure out what was happening. That helpless frustration was exactly where Toph wanted him to be. That's when people started to get sloppy.

She grinned innocently. "I think I have a good hunch on this one."

"Now," a rough voice burst into her consciousness before the ground was yanked from under her suddenly. The contours of the bystanders, the scammer, the shells and the pebble were all swallowed by darkness.

Toph moved around completely disoriented. _What just happened? _She crashed into wooden barriers on every side. She was in a cage. A fucking wooden cage.

Having no other senses to rely on, she listened to the angry rumble of the crowd around her, trying to make sense of what was going in. They were yelling "_Cheater! Street urchin! Guttersnipe! Rascal!"_

"Let me out, dumbsticks!" she yelled angrily, shaking the bars.

Something hit the side of her head, making her face wet. She felt it with her fingers; it was sticky goo and hard shells. It was a pity that she couldn't earthbend with eggshells. If only they'd throw hard rocks at her instead, she'd have a chance to fight back. She would show them.

"This girl took all my honest earnings," a man yelled over the crowd. Toph recognized the card-dealer's voice.

"There is nothing honest about you, jobbernowl. Let me out, you cowards and fight me," Toph retorted.

"Not a chance," laughed a rough, unpleasant voice. The same one that ordered the initial attack. It sounded dull, broken like someone beating a stick against a cracked copper pot. "Cheaters like you are not welcome here."

The crowd cheered in agreement.

Toph crouched down to feel around the cage. It was a crude, uneven construct so she finally found a space big enough to wiggle a hand through the bars, finding contact with the ground. Her range of motion was restricted, but she succeeded in sending a rumbling wave to the underside. _Hopefully enough to shatter this thing._ The crate rattled, but instead of breaking, it flipped sideways.

The crowd laughed as Toph hit her head and swore.

"What a feral little mink-rat," Cracked Pot cackled. "We'd better tie her up."

The cage door opened, and rough hands yanked back Toph's arms, wrapping a rope around her wrists, pulling the knot tight. She kicked out blindly (because, well, doh) but all she hit was air.

The crowd was having fun. Not the type of fun that celebrated her victories back in the Earth Rumble arena, but the kind of merriment that surrounded the losers as they hobbled off the ring after a humiliating defeat. Toph was definitely not used to that kind of mockery directed at her.

"Just fight me, you pig-chickens!" She growled in helpless rage.

"You'd better calm down," Cracked Pot leaned closer, his stinking breath assaulting Toph's nose. That rock-breathing technique would come in handy right about now. Instead Toph settled on aiming a regular spit at him, and she grinned in satisfaction when the guy backed away.

"Take her down to the hold," Cracked Pot ordered, just a hint of outrage lacing his voice. The cage jostled and was carried away with Toph bouncing helplessly inside. Finally, they came to a halt. Toph heard the creaking of the pulley, and felt the cage swing slightly as it was lifted. She must have ended up in one of those hanging wooden prisons that were specifically designed to keep earthbenders from escaping.

"Let me out," Toph yelled again. "I earned that money fair and square."

"I'm sure you can explain that to the Major," a guard snickered.

"At least untie my arms," Toph spat angrily. Her shoulders were hurting.

"You should have behaved. Rabid puma-dogs get chained up," came the reply. "That's the Mayor's rule."

The door was shut and bolted, and Toph stayed alone in the swinging cage inside the chamber that smelled musty and stinky with old human waste. Toph tried to wiggle out of her bounds, but yanking on the ropes just made them tighter. She needed a new plan. She slid around in the cage on her butt, kicking the bars, trying to find a weak spot. The cage swayed with each kick making her dizzy, but the bars didn't budge. Toph gritted her teeth in frustration.

If she couldn't get out alone, her only hope was Zuko. But the firebender if he had half a brain, probably took the opportunity to make his escape at the first sign of trouble, getting out of their deal as a bonus. Toph shouldn't have left him go off by himself with the money. His firebending would be really useful right about now. But there was no way he would come back. No way.

She had only herself to rely on. She could crack this if she didn't panic. Maybe she could challenge this Mayor, whoever he was to a fight. Or try to talk her way out of the cage. She didn't need much, just one moment with her foot planted on the ground and she would show these dunderheads the stuff she was made of.

"Heeeey," she yelled. From the way her voice echoed through the room she could tell that the walls and the floor were made of stone. That was something. But it was also the only thing she knew. Otherwise, there was deafening silence. It was freaky. There was no way to measure the passing of time. There was nothing to do, but wait. Her arms were sore. She had to pee. She tried to hum a tune that her mother sang sometimes, but it made her feel even more lonely. She was scared. One of the first things she had learnt at the arena was that those who lost their nerve, lost the fight too. Being scared never did any good.

She took a deep breath and sat back cross-legged, concentrating on the rocks. If she tried hard enough, maybe she could move them with her mind. Just because nobody had ever done it, didn't mean it was impossible. Maybe nobody tried hard enough.

She thought about Zuko controlling the flames with his meditation breathing. If an idiot firebender could do it, then surely the Blind Bandit could find a way to move rocks that way too.

_Inhale - exhale. Inhale - exhale. Move stupid rock! Inhale - exhale._ The door opened, interrupting her rock meditation.

"I see you settled in." It was Cracked Pot. Who was probably the Mayor the guard mentioned. Mayor Cracked Pot.

"Get me out of here, fopdoodle," Toph demanded. She was not going to be intimidated by this guy. "You are making a mistake."

"Not so fast, little girl. Tell me first, where is scarface? And I'll consider letting you have dinner."

_What on earth was this dumbstick going on about?_ "I have no idea what you mean."

Cracked Pot let out a wheezing sigh. "Several witnesses reported that you had an accomplice, a young man with a hideous scar."

_Wait. Young man. Zuko had a scar? _It kind of made sense now that she thought about their outing to the market. How on edge he was the whole time, how he kept ducking through abandoned alleyways or turning his back to people. _But what would Mayor Cracked Pot want with Zuko?_ Well, in any case, she had no information to offer and even if she had, Toph was no snitch.

"First off, I still have no idea who you are talking about. Second, I'm also blind, so describing someone? Totally unhelpful. For example, for all I know your face looks like the back-end of a badger-mole. But I could be wrong. It could also resemble the armpit of a sloth-monkey. Third, go and ride on a boarcupine." It sounded more confident than she felt, but bad-mouthing was part of the intimidation-game. This was what all the pros did in the fight arena.

"I see. You are not only a filthy little street-scum, but you also have a big mouth spouting dirt." Cracked Pot didn't seem intimidated. Maybe he spent some time in the fight rings himself. "But don't worry. I have plans for you. The Dai Li always pays good money for strays with special talents. And they also know how to keep wild things in line."

Toph only had a vague idea about the Dai Li - _boring history lesson, yaddi-yadda-yadda, Avatar Kyoshi, wow she's kickass, but why use fans for earthbending, it's kind of counter-intuitive, politics blablabla, something-something Dai Li_. Still, she didn't like the sound of this at all.

"Let me out, and I can show you exactly how talented I am," Toph challenged Cracked Pot. _Please take the bait like every other dumbass always does, _she pleaded silently.

"No, thank you. Rabid beasts like you belong in cages," he replied calmly.

"Coward, wimp," Toph spat out. "You are making a mistake. You have no idea who I am."

"And who would that be?" Cracked Pot's voice was filled with sarcasm like he didn't believe she could be important. What if they only caught her to get to Zuko? The thought was kind of offensive.

Toph swallowed. If she told him her name, maybe he'd cut a deal with her father. But that would be the same as admitting defeat and proving her parents' point; that she was just a helpless little girl, unfit to go out in the world. _Never. _

She had a title that she earned by herself. It should do. "I'm the Blind Bandit, and the greatest Earthbender." _You will see. Just wait._

"Small or great, no earthbender has ever broken out of these wooden cages," he replied in a dismissive tone. "If I were you, I'd consider cooperating."

"If I were you, I'd start organizing my last meal," Toph retorted. "Because when I'm done with you, you'll have no teeth left to chew with." She didn't like making empty insults, but sometimes when one was out of stones, hurling words was the best alternative.

Cracked Pot laughed. His footsteps echoed against the stone walls and the loud thump of the closing door meant that he was gone. Toph slumped against the side of her cage, breathing heavily. She needed to crack this problem fast and fight her way out of the cell. And blast that guy's head through a wall.

It was difficult to concentrate as her mind kept replaying the information. The Dai Li. Cracked Pot's interest in Zuko. The scar. What did it all mean?

Well, it did no good thinking about all that stuff. She had to focus on the rocks, on her breath.

_Inhale - Exhale. Move you stubborn rock. Inhale - Exhale. I am. Inhale - Exhale. The Greatest. Inhale - Exhale. Earthbender. _

_Nothing._

Zuko had said that firebenders drew their power from the stomach, unlike earthbenders, who relied on their stance. Maybe that was the key to manipulating the rocks from a distance. She had to try earthbending from her stomach. She focused on her belly, breathing deep into it. _Inhale - swallow - exhale. _ The rock still didn't move, but her stomach growled loudly, reminding her that she hadn't eaten anything in hours. Toph hit her head against the bars. It was stupid. She could break boulders with her head. But the wood which was softer than a rock wouldn't budge.

"Move stupid rock," she yelled with all her helpless rage into the empty chamber. There was a loud scraping noise. _Maybe it worked_! She was the world's greatest earthbender after all.

The scrape was followed by soft, familiar footsteps.

"You came back." Toph felt genuine surprise. There was no sane reason for him to do this, unless it meant that...

"I'd be the world's worst valet if I hadn't." Zuko's dry reply was dripping with sarcasm. Maybe not totally undeserved. Maybe she misjudged him. "Move back."

Toph crawled in the opposite direction from his voice. The cage shook from the impact of his fireball which broke through the wood easily. Toph gave out a startled cry as she started to slide, but before she could get scared, Zuko caught her, his arms wrapping around her tightly. It was great to feel something other than the mind-numbing isolation of the wood.

"Can you stand?"

Toph nodded and he lowered her carefully to the ground. Toph sighed happily as her feet reached the stone-floor, bringing the world back into view. While she inspected their surroundings, Zuko sliced through the ropes that bound her arms. They fell limp to her side prickling with pins and needles.

"Ouch, that hurts," Toph hissed in pain.

"You probably lost circulation." Zuko rubbed them up and down. "Can you bend?"

Toph stomped her foot against the stone floor, shaking it slightly. "I can bend with my tongue if you give me something to work with," she said confidently. She felt much better with each second her toes stretched against the ground.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that. And keep the stomping to a minimum, we need to be stealthy to get out," Zuko pulled her in the direction of the crack in the wall that he used to climb in.

"What is this?"

"It's a loose rock. There is a corridor behind it that leads down to the city cistern then into the river. We can escape that way," Zuko explained.

Toph stopped short. "You said nothing about swimming." There was no way she was going to go from darned wood to slimy water. She had enough blindness and helplessness for a day.

"Don't worry, Toph. I'll get you across." Zuko said soothingly as he pulled her along.

Toph dug her heels into the rocks, making herself unmovable like a mountain. "No way. I have sweet rocks under my foot, and I plan to keep it this way. I'll take my chances with the front door. I have a score to settle anyway."

Toph turned around and stretched her arms. She lunged forward punching easily through the wall. She was in her element. Nobody could stop her now.

-0-

* * *

"Oh, for Agni's sake!" groaned Zuko in exasperation. He knew it was a terrible idea to come back for the terrible brat who had been nothing but trouble from the first minute they met. But it would have been dishonorable to abandon a kid he promised to help. Even if she was a reckless menace like Toph. Instead of being grateful, she blew a hole in his perfectly good, stealthy escape plan. She literally just blew a giant fucking hole in it and proceeded to step through it and stomp loudly enough so the entire spirit-forsaken Earth Kingdom could hear that they were making an escape attempt.

She was not listening to him. Again.

Zuko gritted his teeth in anger, considering his options. He could still try to slip away through the back door while Toph was putting on her earthbending show or whatever the blast she was doing. After all, he did his part, gave her the chance to escape. He didn't need to go down with her. But at this point, sticking together was probably their best chance.

He darted after her, watching as she knocked out the four guards standing outside the door with a satisfied grin. The fall of heavy footsteps indicated that more were coming.

"We need to hurry up!" Zuko urged her.

"I agree. Hold on," Toph yelled back and Zuko lost his balance for a moment as the earth started to flow under his feet. He steadied himself holding onto Toph's shoulder, who propelled them forward with powerful moves that looked like she was skating. Zuko never knew earthbenders could do that. It was kind of neat.

"Next time, warning would be appreciated."

"You wanted a river." Toph snickered, clearly enjoying the demonstration.

"Go left," Zuko yelled, orienting her towards the outer walls of the prison. Zuko looked back just in time to see a guard with his bow drawn, pointing an arrow at them. _Think, quick._ Zuko closed his eyes, trying to keep his stance with the earth shaking under his feet and struck his arms out, fingers pointed at the arrow. The guard yelped in dismay as the arrow went up in flames, burning the string of the bow in the process.

Maybe there was an upside to Uncle making him practice precision bending for three years on that damned ship. He could do it in his sleep, hanging upside down or in the middle of a literal earthquake. On the downside, he just outed himself as a firebender. But that was a problem for another time.

"Almost made it to the gate," he noted hopefully, thinking that maybe it was going to be easier than he had thought... _Or not._

Suddenly, the flow of rocks stopped abruptly, sending both him and Toph flying ahead. He managed to grab her waist mid-fall and soften their landing with a roll. Soften _her_ landing more precisely, which meant that he was taking the brunt of the impact. His shoulder cracked against a big rock sticking out from the uneven ground, and he sincerely hoped it wasn't dislocated.

As he scrambled to his feet, he saw that the guards had caught up with them, surrounding them in a circle. Some of them were clearly earthbenders - that's how the stopped Toph's earth-river. Others were armed with clubs, hammers and poles. _Great. _

"Your plan sucks," he scowled at Toph.

"No it doesn't. It's a two-in-one for the missed bending practice. We fight our way to the gate. Time to break out the blasting jelly, Blue," Toph replied pushing her back against Zuko's, knocking out two guards who made the mistake of standing close together with a giant boulder.

Zuko spun around quickly lighting a ring of fire around them. It was better to keep those clubs and poles at a safe distance. Through the flames he could see one of the men raising his hammer, sending a large rock in their direction. Oh great, one of _those_ guys. Zuko pulled out his swords to defend against the boulder, but before it could make an impact, Toph blocked it by raising a wall in front of Zuko. _Good timing._ Then again, Uncle always said that earthbending was all about the right moment. A concept Zuko had always had trouble with.

The earthbender-guards in the meantime broke several pathways through the circle of fire. A guard with a long sword lounged at Zuko. Luckily, his form was terrible. Zuko parried it easily with his boardswords and kicked the guy in the balls. Master Piandao wouldn't call it elegant, but it was effective. The man shrieked and doubled over in pain. Zuko hit the back of his head with the hilt of his sword. That stopped the screaming. The dismayed cries from behind his back meant that Toph was also giving her opponents the stone-glove treatment.

"Push them up against the wall, you cowards," a large earthbender who seemed to be in charge of the attack ordered.

Three guards jumped into the ring, waving their weapons in Zuko's direction. He shot a quick succession of fireballs, aiming at their feet, trying to break their root, just like Iroh taught him. This also meant that he didn't quite notice the earthbender that knocked him over with a large rock aimed squarely at his ribs. Zuko rolled over in pain, panting heavily..

"Are you ok there?" Toph asked giving him a hand.

"Just great," Zuko groaned, the sharp pain stabbing his ribs. "How about you make us an exit and I cover your back?"

"How about we beat them all to a pulp?" grinned Toph.

"Toph, I think you proved your point. Let's get out of here before it's too late.

Zuko stood close to Toph's back kicking fire-blasts at the attackers. He heard the wall crack behind him. As he was getting ready to make the jump for it, everything got blurry from a large cloud of dust.

"Now!" he heard a yell.

He never saw the heavy chain-net until it was pulled tight around them, entrapping Zuko and Toph in helpless tangle of limbs.

"Take them to the canister," the leader bellowed. The guards grunted as they lifted the net on long poles. They shoved Zuko and Toph into a dark, tight box.

"Well, well, well. Isn't this my lucky day?" The leader snickered at them, his lips curving into a cruel smile under his thin moustache. He pulled his finger over the edge of Zuko's dagger- which the guards took - across the edge. "You came back for that little brat. Who would have thought that firebender scum are so sentimental?"

"What do you want from us," Zuko asked coldly.

The man looked at Zuko with a calculating, measuring gaze. "Tell me, how much do you think the Dai Li is willing to pay for the Fire Lord's son, Prince Zuko?"

Zuko had no idea. He gave the man his most intimidating scowl.

The doors of the cell were shot and bolted, leaving them trapped inside a dark, metal box with only tiny openings for air.

"Well, this is fucked up," Zuko sighed burying his head in his hands.

"You said it." Toph huffed in agreement.

As improbable as it was, things just got exponentially worse.


	9. Chapter 9

As soon as the door of their cell was closed they started yelling over each other. Zuko was very loud, but Toph had learnt a thing or two about voice projection in her fight arena days.

"Are you really a FUCKING prince?"

"Do you still think the front door was such a great option?"

"Didn't the terms say no more LYING?"

"For once I had a plan… But you just had to be the most STUBBORN...FRUSTRATING…"

"I mean that's like important information right there…"

"And I am done with your stupid terms and QUIT being your valet…"

"You were terrible at it anyways..."

"Next time just get yourself out of a wooden cage for all I care."

"I will too."

"That's not how the world works, Toph. Things don't just miraculously go your way! And now we are both SCREWED," he smashed his fist against the wall, the loud ring thundering around the chamber._ Bang. Bang-bang-bang._

The sound shocked them out of their shouting match. They both fell quiet, their ragged breaths echoing in the cell. Toph slid against the wall.

"I'm as good as dead." Zuko didn't even sound scared as much as disappointed and exhausted. He was the Fire Lord's son. The spawn of the evilest person in the world. Toph shouldn't have cared, but she did. She didn't want him dead or hurt. Because maybe he came from a screwed up family, and was pretty useless as a valet, but he also had a strange sense of honor and loyalty, and was even kind in his own odd, grumpy way. And it's not like people got to choose their family. She certainly knew _that _.

"We'll get out." She didn't know how, but they had to. "Fire can melt metal, no?" she asked hopefully.

"Depends on the metal and the thickness. But even if I could make fire that hot, it would crisp us first."

OK, he may have had a point there. Toph didn't think about that. _What a stupid element. _

"So not the best plan," she acknowledged.

"Nope."

It was just a regular nope, not even an angry or sarcastic one. He sounded defeated. Toph felt like it was up to her to make it better somehow. Only because he was such a miserable company in his current state and not because she felt guilty for getting them captured in the first place.

"We did make a good team out there though. You fought well." A compliment on his fighting skills ought to do it. It had the added benefit of being true. He bent much better than he had during their sparring sessions. Making their elements work in tandem had truly interesting potential. "Xin Fu told me that before the war, there used to be arena fights with mixed bending teams."

"Xin Fu?" Zuko repeated clearly only half listening. At least he wasn't shouting anymore.

"He was the guy running Earth Rumble." Toph explained. Xin Fu knew everything about the history of fighting. "Imagine the fun with all the different benders in the mix. I'd definitely take you on my team. We could call it Blind and Blue."

"Catchy," he said without any enthusiasm.

Toph felt a bit miffed. Didn't he hear her offer him a spot on her pro-bending team? He thought she would extend such an invitation lightly? He was really down if he didn't see what an extraordinary praise that was. Toph didn't mind grumpy, but this pit of despair was just too much. She sighed and fell silent.

She replayed the fight in her head, trying to figure out where they went wrong and how they could build their different moves into supporting each other better. The events of the day all swirled in a chaos. There was one little thing that niggled at her mind. A detail Cracked Pot mentioned that seemed somehow significant.

"Zuko, do you really have a scar?"

The silence became eerier, like he stopped breathing altogether.

"Who told you that?" he sounded angry.

"Mayor Cracked Pot." Toph raised her hand reaching out towards his face. "Can I see?"

"Why?" he grabbed her wrist in an iron grip.

"Well, you saw my face. It's only fair that I see yours," Toph replied, more than a bit annoyed.

"Why now? Because I have a scar?" he snapped. There was a sharp edge to his voice.

_Sheesh _. So touchy. "No, because we travel together. We are even cell-mates. And I realized that I have no idea what you look like. It could be important. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know. It never came up. It didn't seem important," he said defensively. He continued on a softer voice. "It was kind of nice. You were the first person I've met in three years, who didn't look at me and see a scar."

Toph could definitely understand that.

"Yeah, I know how that feels. Most people look at me, and see nothing but my blindness. But you saw beyond it."

He let go of her wrist and Toph took it as permission.

She ran her fingers over his hairline and down his right cheek. He had short, fuzzy spikes and smooth skin. She traced his thick eye-brow and his straight nose. Her fingers explored a pointy chin, which had no stubble at all. _How old was he? _Probably much younger than she had thought.

She continued her way up on the left side. When she reached the nose-line, she could feel the smooth skin turn into a rough, rubbery surface. She didn't have to ask what made this kind of damage; it felt exactly like the skin of a well-crisped pig-chicken. A lot of things about him fell into place. No wonder he was wary of fire.

The extent of the damage was bigger than she expected, going all the way to his crumpled ear and up to his temple where his hair didn't come in the way it did on the other side. It was bigger than her hand.

There was tenseness radiating from him and Toph realized that she should say something.

"For what it's worth, I think it makes you look badass." It wasn't an empty platitude. She really meant it. Some of the most legendary fighters had the coolest scars. Zuko was made of some tough stuff to have survived something like this and Toph respected a survivor.

-0-

* * *

It felt weird to have her - no doubt filthy - fingers run over his face, but Zuko felt too drained to fight over something like this with a 12-year-old. She examined him slowly, matter-of-factly. Starting at the ragged hairline of his freshly grown-out hair. She continued down the un-scarred side of his face, examining the arch of his brow, his nose, his chin, then up the other side. He froze as her fingers got to the edges of the scar. The last person to touch it was Uncle when he meticulously cleaned the wound every night for weeks after the Agni kai. He could have asked someone from the crew but he always did it personally. Probably to give Zuko a safe space to break down if he needed to when pushing through the pain and depression wore him thin by the end of the day. At the time, Zuko took all this for granted, but now he felt gratitude towards the old man who guarded so steadfastly the last shreds of Zuko's pride.

The inside of their cell was quite dark, so Zuko couldn't see her face clearly, but there didn't seem to be the usual reaction of disgust and repulsion that most people had when they looked at him. He learnt to pretend not to care, to scowl at them instead with disdain, but it still hurt every single time.

Her fingers didn't falter at the edge. She explored the rough, scaly surface impassively. Zuko could barely feel her touch; the damaged skin didn't have a lot of feeling left in it.

When she finished her examination, she noted, "For what it's worth, I think it makes you look badass."

Zuko was relieved that she didn't offer pity. Pity always made things worse. But she probably knew that from personal experience.

"You got it in a fight?" she asked.

Zuko swallowed. Most people didn't dare ask him outright. Then again he always assumed that everyone in the whole world knew._ Agni _knew, there were plenty of spectators there. Father made sure of that.

"I got it because I didn't fight," he spat out bitterly.

"Why?"

Zuko had asked himself the question a million times. Why didn't he? Azula would have. She wouldn't have begged with tears in her eyes in front of the entire fucking court. But how could he? How could he risk _hurting _Father? He would have broken off his own arms first than do that. But then how could he not care that he was hurting Zuko?

The familiar angry tears gathered in his throat, threatening to come out.

"I don't want to talk about it," he hissed.

"Is this why you aren't at home?" Toph asked quietly.

"I said I don't want to talk about it." he shouted angrily. A thin flame escaped his nostrils and a single tear started travelling down his unscarred cheek. It was mortifying. He gritted his teeth and fought the emotion. He had better control than this.

She just didn't know when to stop pushing, did she?

"It's fine if you don't want to." Toph held up her hands. "I just think it's kind of weird that you can't go home because you didn't want to fight and I can't go home because I wanted to fight. Families are hard." she sighed. There was no judgement in her voice.

"No kidding."

"So this is why you are so careful with your bending - you don't want to hurt anyone." It wasn't a question.

Zuko didn't want to think about the months after the Agni kai, when seeing the smallest flame made him flinch and freeze in panic. The endless control training with Uncle before he was ready to throw his first fireball and how his hands were shaking terrified that he would hurt someone. That terror never quite left him.

"It makes me weak."

"No, it makes you decent."

"Decent gets no points where I come from." At least not since Mother disappeared into the night without an explanation. "I'd take strong over decent."

"No you wouldn't," Toph said with conviction.

She was probably right. After all she was the living lie detector. Maybe she could tell not only the lies he was telling her, but also those he was telling himself.

_Lie detector...But..._

"Wait… How do you know?"

"Because you are a terrible liar…" Toph shrugged, but then her loud gasp let Zuko know that she realized the same thing he did. "and yes… I can still feel your lies. Which means, that the metal responds to earthbending. I should be able to tear it apart. Yay!" she smiled confidently.

Zuko shook his head. "That's impossible. Earthbenders can't bend metal."

"Maybe they just haven't tried hard enough," Toph frowned. _This was going to be one of those greatest-earthbender speeches, wasn't it? _ "Maybe they just accepted others telling them what their limits were. If I let what's possible to be decided by other people, I would still be a weak, little blind girl."

She was probably not talking about Zuko, but she might as well have been. He's been trying to follow the rules given to him by other people his whole life. His father, his firebending instructors… even Uncle. Maybe that was his problem. Maybe he needed to forget about these limits to grow. He envied the little blind girl who had such an unshakable confidence in who she was. Zuko wasn't sure he remembered anymore a version of himself that wasn't bent out of shape to please someone.

"Can you sense me?" he asked.

Toph didn't reply. She put both of her hands on the sides of the box. She flexed her fingers and toes. She tried different angles. She even knocked her head against the sides a few times. _That was a no then. _She let out a frustrated huff, and started again.

Zuko wondered how long it took her to admit defeat when faced with a hopeless task.

_That's funny, coming from you, Zuzu. After three years of chasing clouds and you still won't admit that Father doesn't want you. He never has. - No. You are lying. You are always lying. - Want to ask your blind little friend to fact-check that for you? _

Toph clicked her tongue. "I'll get this. Just be quiet."

"I didn't say anything," Zuko replied totally confused.

"You think too loudly."

"Sorry," he muttered. He really hoped Toph couldn't read his silent conversations with his sister in his head. _Azula-in-his-mind _was just as vindictive and abrasive as her real-life counterpart. She was probably not the best person to bounce ideas off of, but at least she didn't speak in indecipherable proverbs.

"I'm getting there. Do something," Toph instructed him.

Zuko shifted position. He sat on his heels and rested his hands on his knees.

"I've got it. I see you." Toph yelled triumphantly. "And I can feel the metal."

She pushed on the material and sent a rumble through the bottom of the cell. It was like a wave. A _fucking _metal wave.

"Unbelievable."

There was no way - yet she did it. Zuko didn't know how to feel about it, because he wanted her to succeed, _yes, sure, absolutely _. But it also did prove her point that limits were sometimes self-imposed and it was a dangerous path to travel down.

"You see?" Toph smirked proudly. "I told you we'd get out. Stand back. And get those fireballs ready, in case there is someone outside."

_Right. _They had no idea who or what was on the other side.

Zuko grabbed her wrists. "Wait!"

"Why? Are you crazy?" Toph exclaimed.

_What would Uncle say? _Surely, something about a plan and thinking things through.

"For now, they don't know that you can do this. It's our only advantage. We'll only get one chance at this. We have to get it right this time."

Toph pondered this for a moment.

"You mean to wait for the right moment?"

"Precisely. The neutral jing. Uncle said it was an important thing for earthbending. We need to know more before we act."

Toph nodded in agreement.

"So what's the plan?"

That was the tricky part, because Zuko didn't have one. And in their unlikely group of two, a little blind girl had the unquestionable claim to muscle, so it somehow fell on him to be the plan-guy.


	10. Chapter 10

Waiting was boring and pointless. Toph amused herself by making creases in the metal floor of their prison and straightening them out, her fingers molding the material as if it were clay. It was surprisingly easy now that she figured it out. It was crazy that nobody thought of it before. You just had to ignore the big blotches of darkness of the metal and concentrate on the tiny grains of mineral embedded into the material. It was a bit like being blind; concentrating on not seeing was how one was truly unable to see, but focusing on the small pockets of sensations and vibrations in the endless nothingness helped make sense of the world.

She had no idea how long Zuko's been gone. The guards came earlier to take him for questioning. It was kind of offensive that the Dai Li agent wanted to talk to him first. As if a Fire Nation prince was somehow more important than the greatest earthbender who just figured out how to bend metal. You'd think they would want that knowledge. Well, ok, they didn't know that Toph knew. But still...

The damp rotten smell of the prison penetrated her nose as the cell door opened with a loud creak.

"Zuko?"

A loud, derisive snort was the response. "I'm sorry it's not your boyfriend. Just lunch. Though if you ask me, we shouldn't bother feeding a sewer-possum-rat like you."

"He's not my boyfriend," Toph snapped back angrily. How dare this idiot?

"You should be ashamed of yourself - consorting with the enemy. Traitor," he spat.

"I'll make your head consort with a rock, you idiot," Toph snarled back at him. If he thought she was going to be intimidated, he had no idea who he was facing. The Blind Bandit didn't become Earth Rumble champion without picking up some pre-match trash-talking skills. "He's not like that."

"They are all like that. You let them close and you get burnt." Toph felt something hot pouring into her lap, burning her thighs.

"Ouch," Toph cried out in pain. "Watch what you're doing, bampot."

"Sorry, my hand must have slipped," the guard sniggered on a voice that sounded like he was not sorry at all. "If you can't stand the heat, you shouldn't get close to the fire. It doesn't matter. I'm sure the Dai Li will take care of you."

What a dumb-stick.

"At least I won't have to smell your stinky breath anymore. It's worse than the bottom of the latrine."

The guard huffed. "I see your mouth is just as filthy as it was. But look at you. Nobody misses you. Nobody is coming to find you. Here, inside the metal cell, you are nobody. You are nothing. Just a helpless, filthy, ugly, blind little street-urchin."

The metal door closed shut with a bang.

Toph exhaled furiously. She itched to shove a big metal ball into the guy's mouth just to shut him up and show him how wrong he was about her. But she had promised Zuko that she would not make any trouble. It was a promise she had already regretted. Who needed a plan? It was always the same anyways. Smash their heads, punch them in the gut until they couldn't get up.

Her stomach was painfully empty. She tapped her hand around the floor for the bowl to find out if there was anything left in it. She found it upside down and empty. The spilled soup spread over the cold floor in a thin, disgusting layer of wet grease. She wiped her fingers into her clothes.

After making her way to the opposite corner, she punched the metal then straightened it again and again. _This idiot. He will see. They would all see what she was made of. _ _His words didn't matter._

Still they cut deep inside her stomach like sharp stones, making it hard to breathe.

_What if it was true? What if nobody missed her? _

She wondered what her parents were doing now that they didn't have to spend so much time and energy hiding her from the world. Was her mother feeling sad and scared that she was all alone out there? Was her dad angry and ashamed? Were they talking about her at all? Or more likely they just went on pretending that she never existed. A lot like Toph was pretending not to notice the tear that was pooling in the corner of her eyes.

-0-

Thirty-two steps. Right turn. Forty-five steps. Left turn. Zuko tried to commit to memory the layout of the prison.

_Knowing your battlefield is the first step to a successful battle, Prince Zuko. _It was one of the things Iroh used to say under the pretense of trying to teach Zuko how to be a good leader. The vily old man was just probably sick of having to get Zuko out of trouble that somehow always seemed to find him.

The stone shackles dug into the skin of his wrists and legs and the blindfold over his eyes made the recon quite difficult, but Zuko kept counting the steps and the turns. After two more left turns, they came to a halt.

Zuko let out a surprised yelp when the ground started to sink under his feet. _He was so sick of earthbenders and their stupid tricks. _They were going down, but Zuko had no way of knowing how far. He fell to his knees when the rock came to a sudden halt. Rough hands grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved him forward. There was a loud rumbling of rocks, like a wall crashing and someone ripped the blindfold from his eyes. Zuko blinked into the blinding light. The contours of a man with a hat like a bizarre mushroom appeared in his line of vision. _The Earth Kingdom had the worst hats. _Zuko knew that from personal experience as he had been forced to wear them while his hair was growing out.

The man stepped closer, towering above him threateningly. Well, it's not like he hadn't stared down scarier people.

_You mean Dad? - Shut up Azula. _

Zuko let out a controlled breath to get rid of those treacherous thoughts. Azula even in his imagination knew how to be as annoying as possible. Zuko could not waste his energy fighting off her lies, he had to keep his composure. He was the Fire Prince and it was his duty to show these people he wasn't scared. He straightened out as much as the stone shackles allowed him and put on his scariest scowl.

"Prince Zuko," the Dai Li agent snarled. "I have to say, I never imagined finding you here, in a dusty corner of Earth Kingdom."

That was one thing they agreed on. Zuko had never in his worst nightmares thought he would end up here. But the agent didn't need to know this, so he kept his mouth shut, in accordance with the rules of the Military Handbook.

"I wonder what you have done to have fallen so far from grace," the agent continued, circling slowly around Zuko like a predator.

Zuko kept his gaze defiantly on a spot on the opposite wall and didn't say anything.

"But a disgraced prince is still a prince. I'm certain the Grand Secretariat will find good uses for you," the agent continued. Zuko tried in vain to recall his lessons on Earth Kingdom government to figure out who the agent might have been talking about. Those school lessons were so long ago. Another lifetime almost.

_I would remember it, Zuzu. - Of course, you would. Care to share? - That would be cheating, wouldn't it?_

Zuko shoved the image of his sister's taunting smile away. It didn't matter who the Grand Secretariat was. "You are wasting your time. My fa.. The Fire Lord will never negotiate," he said coldly to the agent. He was certain of that.

"He must not care for you much if he lets his only son starve in enemy lands," the agent shrugged giving Zuko a pointed look.

_He's right you know. Dad would be happy to be rid of you, Zuzu. You are such an embarrassment. Look at you, captured by some dirt-bending peasants. _

"You don't know anything," Zuko exclaimed angrily, hating the wetness of his own voice. "I'd be honored to die to serve my country."

"So dramatic," the agent said with a mocking smile. "But you see, we have very different plans for you."

The agent walked very slowly to the desk. Zuko followed his movements with his eyes, noticing for the first time his dao swords propped up in the corner. The agent came back with a familiar blade, pulling it's sharp point lightly across the scarred skin on Zuko's face. Not enough to make it bleed, but enough that Zuko had to close his eyes and swallow hard to stop himself from trembling. The sensation teleported him back again _to then_, to his dark little cabin on the ship lying curled up on the bed, crying in pain every night as Iroh took off the bandage and worked patiently to remove the dead, burnt skin.

"Where did you steal this?" the agent waved the dagger in front of his eyes.

"I didn't steal it. It was a gift." Zuko scowled. How dare this nobody accuse him of being a thief.

_But you are, aren't you?_

"You have many friends in the Earth Kingdom, I presume?" The agent chuckled slightly, full of sarcasm.

Zuko didn't like the idea that the Dai Li would think of him as a common thief. A Prince of the Fire Nation acted with honor and it was better if these people understood that too. "Uncle gave it to me when I was just a boy."

"The Dragon of the West must be very fond of you to give you such an exquisite present." The triumphant glimmer in the agent's eye made Zuko realize that saying too much was a mistake, but it was too late to take the words back. He bit his lips.

"So where is he?"

"I don't know," Zuko shrugged.

"You were traveling together before." It wasn't a question. Clearly, the Dai Li had spies in the harbours and kept tabs on their activity.

"We were split up. I have no idea where he is," Zuko repeated more firmly, grateful that it was the truth. This was his mess and he didn't want Iroh dragged into it.

"Maybe this will help you remember." The agent turned his hands upside-down, his fingers curling inwards like claws of a beast. Zuko recognized the bending move from his sparring sessions with Toph and braced himself as the shackles squeezed tighter and tighter until it felt like his bones were about to be crushed.

"I don't know," he said between gritted teeth. "And even if I did, I'd rather die than tell you."

The agent increased the pressure and looked on impassively as Zuko fought off tears of pain. After a long, silent moment, he loosened the shackles. Zuko collapsed on the floor, his arms and legs numb from the cut-off circulation.

"Doesn't matter. You see, Prince Zuko. I'm sure we can find a way to get him to come to us instead," the agent noted.

"He's smarter than to walk into your little trap willingly," Zuko retorted, panting still heavily from the pain.

_Sure, our dear Uncle Fatso is so clever. Unless he feels like taking a bath. Or has an overwhelming need to drink silverleaf tea. Or he lost his favourite pai sho piece. _Zuko closed his eyes. Azula was always lying, but that didn't mean she was always wrong.

"Who said anything about a trap?" the Dai Li agent scratched his chin thoughtfully. "A trade. Your life for his. Or you think he'd refuse?"

Zuko felt icy cold hands of fear gripping his insides. No, Uncle wouldn't be that stupid to try to bargain with the enemy. Zuko wouldn't want him to. He had to know that.

_You can't ask me not to try to save you, Zuko. You know that ever since I lost my son … - Don't say it, Uncle. Please don't. You shouldn't. I can't - I think of you as my son. - But I'm not. - To me, you are…_

Even if it was true _(of course, it's true)_ that was between him and Uncle. Zuko tried shoo Iroh's gentle eyes away from his mind and keep his features under control.

The agent continued, "Imagine what a victory it will be for the Earth Kingdom to bring the notorious general with so much blood on his hands to justice, right in the middle of Ba Sing Se, where he always wanted to be. You know what we do with war criminal ash-makers? We first crush their hands and feet, so they cannot bend anymore. Bone by bone, knuckle by knuckle. Then we start breaking all the other bones…"

Zuko wanted to cover his ears like when he was a child and the bed-time story came to a scary part. But he wasn't a child anymore and his hands were shackled anyways. "I have nothing to say to you," he managed to breath out.

"You've already said more than enough," the agent gave him a malevolent grin. "Take him back to his cell," he called for the guards.

The blindfold in place, they retraced their steps to the cell. Zuko stumbled along numbly. He had thought the Dai Li would want him to write to his father. To beg to be saved. Not in his worst nightmares did he think that they would want to use him to get to Uncle. Who was out there alone in the wilderness. This was his fault. Again. Because he was too proud and stubborn to admit that Iroh was right about not stealing. He went off on his own in a tantrum and managed to put not only himself at risk, but also Uncle. Father was right. He was a failure. How could Uncle refuse to see that?

The cell-door opened and the guards pushed him inside, locking it again.

Toph bent the shackles off of him. "So what happened? Do you have a plan?" she asked excitedly.

"I don't care about plans. We need to get out of here," Zuko whispered nervously in case the guards were eavesdropping.

Toph lowered her voice. "I told you. But what happened?"

"My uncle, I need to find him right away," Zuko explained.

"The old teapot-guy?" An indulgent smile appeared on Toph's lips.

"You know Uncle?" Zuko asked surprised. Everyone in the entire world seemed to know Uncle. Every tea-merchant in every harbour. Old fortune-teller women. Ladies of dubious reputation with heavily painted faces. Music instrument makers. Everyone. But Toph?

"I've met the guy. I knocked him over and he made me tea." Yep, that sounded like Iroh. "Actually, on the same day that I met you. I'm sure he's fine. He didn't seem lost at all. In fact, he said he was tracking you in case you needed help."

Of course, he would know that Zuko was going to get himself into trouble. So he could burst in and save him and not even say I-told-you-so, but just give one of those silent looks that said told-you-so anyways. Except, they had been in prison for three days. And Uncle didn't burst in to save them. Which could only mean one thing.

"Then he's already in trouble."

* * *

A/N: Oh, sorry that this was a bit of wait. I was off on holidays thinking I'll write loads. As it turns out, hiking in the sticks is tiring business, and also it feels good to unplug and stare at the starry night instead of my computer. But now I'm back and should be back on a biweekly or so updating schedule.


	11. Chapter 11

Xin Fu used to say that one of the best things about watching Toph fight was to see her opponent's eyes reach the tilting point. It was the moment of realization of how badly they miscalculated; how catastrophically they underestimated her. It was the moment they knew they would lose the fight. Xin Fu thought it was a terrible pity that Toph would never see someone get to the tilting point.

What Xin Fu didn't know was that maybe Toph never saw the tilting point, she felt it many times. The sudden change of rhythm in the heartbeat, going from confident drumming to caged bird-wing flutters. The hitch in the breath. That bead of cold sweat of fear that hit the stone ground. Or metal as the case may be.

The guard that a few hours ago so callously poured food into her lap now cowered fearfully as she tore the walls of their cell apart with her bare hands. Toph smirked - this would be fun. Except… there was a thud and the guy fell on the floor silently.

"Why did you do that?" she asked annoyed. "I wasn't done with him."

"No time for games, Toph. Just stuff him in the can and close it back up. We need to get out of here," Zuko replied impatiently, radiating authority.

Toph generally didn't like to be ordered around, but then again, Zuko was already worried and impatient so she decided to let it slide. For this once.

"Now you want to get out..." Toph closed back the metal.

"This way…" Zuko pulled her in the other direction holding her wrist. She heard him mutter under his breath and come to a sudden halt. "There should be a vertical shaft here of some kind."

Toph placed her palm on the ground picturing the layout of the underground.

"I can feel it. Is this our way out?"

"No I need to go down there. Can you get me there?"

"Piece of cake."

Once they reached the bottom and entered a room, Toph asked, "What are we exactly doing down here instead of escaping?"

"Just picking up my things," Zuko's voice came from the corner.

"Your things?" Toph asked in disbelief. "So it's not OK for me to finish off that idiot guard…"

"This is important. And we need money. They still owe us some money for the stuff they took from you."

Toph found herself nodding along. That was undeniably good thinking - she earned that money fair and square. From the way the coins were clinging, it was a rather heavy purse too.

She leaned against the wall waiting for Zuko to finish whatever he was doing and felt something.

"Ready to go back up," Zuko whispered, "Look, now we need to be stealthy…"

"Or we could just use the secret tunnel," she smirked in self-satisfaction.

"What secret tunnel?"

"This one," Toph opened the entrance with one dramatic move. The stone sang against the ground as it slid open. Toph sighed happily; metalbending was good and fun, but there was something deeply satisfying about plain old rock and dirt.

"Shhhhh. Can you earthbend a little more quietly?" Zuko shushed.

Toph scoffed. He was being ridiculous. Earthbending was loud and rumbly, that was the whole point of it. There was a reason they didn't call the fight arena Earth Hush-Hush.

"No."

Toph opened the way and without looking back, she started crawling through the tight passage. She soon heard Zuko shuffling behind her.

"Where do you think it leads?" he asked.

"We'll see, I guess."

"Do you feel where the end is?" His voice sounded tight.

"Are you afraid of tunnels?"

"No. Not afraid." Liar. "Long, dark, underground tunnels make me uneasy that's all. I just feel blind."

"Well, then it's lucky that I can see perfectly," Toph said smugly. "Just stay close to me. It's not far."

The tunnel opened to a meadow and after the stench of the prison it was good to smell freedom. It smelled green or at least what Toph imagined green to be. Zuko stretched next to her letting out a relieved sigh.

"So what now?" Toph asked once she had her fill of stretching and enjoying the moist dirt under her toes.

"I think we should keep walking East," Zuko replied. "If we get closer to the Si Wong Desert, we are less likely to run into unwanted company. There are some outposts there where we could pick up supplies and ask around without drawing much attention."

"Well, I've never seen a desert," shrugged Toph. "And I'm definitely hungry. Prison food sucks more than your rice."

"At least I try cooking," Zuko shot back somewhat testily.

They didn't get far before Toph's feet picked up some faint rumbling, getting closer. A beat later she could hear the clopping of hooves against the dirt. Someone was after them.

Zuko must have heard it too, because he yelled "run!" and started sprinting; Toph raced after him, skating on a wave of earth.

"I really don't feel like going back to the prison," she panted.

"Then lets pick up the speed, they are gaining on us," Zuko replied out of breath.

The hooves indeed now sounded much closer than before. Also, there was something really familiar about that rhythm.

"Stop, Zuko," she said and turned around smiling.

"What are you doing? Have you gone mad?"

"No, I just recognize the clopping, is all…"

She was right of course as confirmed a minute later by Zuko exclaiming happily. "Cloudberry!"

The ostrich horse greeted them with slobby licks and for once Toph didn't mind.

Bouncing in the saddle of the ostrich horse, it felt like the world was back to normal. Just the three of them together on the road again - it was a good feeling. Toph soaked in the sounds and smells and enjoyed the sunshine caressing her face. It reminded her of sitting outside their garden at home dreaming about adventures outside the high walls. Those dreams usually included endless earthbending duels - Toph winning all of them of course in front of an adoring crowd - rather than hungry stomachs and stints in stinky prisons. Home made her think of her parents and she wondered if they felt sadness or if they were worried. Maybe she should write to them to let them know she was fine. Or did they even care? Could she even go home after everything?

She truly didn't know. What if these Dai Lee creepers were truly after her trying to turn her into who knows what. It was unsettling to think that her own countrymen could want to hurt her. The bad people were the Fire Nation - and yet here she was riding with the son of the Fire Lord. It was unbelievable.

Cloudberry stopped abruptly and Zuko climbed off the saddle. "I think this is far enough."

"Why are we stopping?" Toph asked suspiciously.

"We need to bathe."

The soft splashing sounds of water rolling against the shore nearby punctuated Zuko's statement.

Toph shuddered instinctively. "I'll pass."

"Come on, Toph. I even stole some clean clothes for us from the prison. Come for a swim."

The water splashed loudly around his feet as he stepped into the water.

Toph sat on a rock and cautiously dipped her toes in the lake. As always, she was immediately surrounded by an unpleasant cold, wet darkness. She yanked her feet back. Nope. Not this.

"I'm blind."

Zuko chuckled and there was a big splash as he presumably submerged himself in the water.

"I can do it with my eyes closed."

"Not funny…" Toph crossed her arms defensively.

Splash. Splash. "Come on. The Toph I know is a boundary-pushing, metal-bending champion. A little water shouldn't scare you."

Zuko's voice sounded devoid of its usual grumpiness - somehow lighter, more playful. Was he smiling?

"I'm not scared." She wasn't. After all she was a boundary-pushing, metal-bending champion. "I just choose to sit here."

"You never back down from a challenge."

Toph bit the inside of her cheek. She knew when she was being baited and she would not fall for such a stupid trap. "Of course not. But it's not even worth my time."

"Come on. You need to clean up if we are to go anywhere."

"I'm an earth-bender, I'm supposed to look like this."

"Are you also supposed to smell like the gutter?"

"I do not…" Toph took a sniff at herself and yeah, well, fine, maybe... just maybe he did have a point.

"OK, fine, since you are as stubborn as a donkey-rat."

She took Zuko's hand and stepped into the water, trying not to show her panic as the earth disappeared from under her. It was just a frightening abyss. Her instinct was to start struggling, but Zuko's hands held onto her firmly, which was at least a fixed point in all the wet blur. He held the middle of her back and guid

ed her on top of the water. It was like lying in a bed that kept disappearing from under you.

"Just relax and float. I'm right here with you."

Toph focused on Zuko's palm, the only solid point. He had freakishly big hands, but at least it was warm and solid.

"Just let the water do the work…."

Before she could ask what on earth did that even mean, she felt the hand move away. As she was swallowed into the wet void, she started to flail.

The reassuring hand was back immediately. "Don't panic. Don't fight the water."

"I never panic…" Toph forced herself to relax. "I'm the greatest earthb.." The treacherous element apparently had no respect for her earth-bending prowess as it stopped her from finishing her sentence by getting into her mouth.

"I'm going to take my hand away again. But this time keep calm. You won't sink, I promise," Zuko said in a soothing voice like he was talking to a frightened child. Toph hated that voice, and even more hated it that she somehow found it soothing. Her stubbornness bubbled up from deep in her gut.

Before she got a chance to complain, Zuko pulled back again, leaving Toph alone with the slimy, fuzzy, wet. Toph swallowed her panic trying to take a calming breath. Gentle waves rippled around her moving her body in every direction in a disorienting way, but Zuko was right, she didn't sink.

"Just like that, let it carry you."

Floating was a strange feeling, very different from being rooted to her element. It required constant adjusting, moving with the gentle waves, not knowing what happens next, not controlling anything. But after a while under the fuzzy mass of the water, she could feel the contours of the mud at the bottom of the lake and the solid line of the shore.

Toph couldn't stop the proud smile stretching her lips wide. "I can't believe I'm swimming."

"It's because you are not. You are floating. But that's a start," Zuko laughed.

"Don't be a downer. This totally counts as a swim," she retorted. "And for the record I still hate it."

Well, maybe she didn't totally hate it. She stretched her arms and legs into the weightlessness. Focusing on nothing, but the rocking motion of the waves helped clear the worried clutter of her mind.

-0-

After drying themselves off, Zuko cooked the fish he caugth in the lake. As he stared into the fire, he couldn't help remembering his pathetic attempts during their first week in the wilderness to find food. This inevitably brought back memories of Uncle celebrating even the most pitiful, meager catch, telling Zuko to be patient, encouraging his efforts in his infuriatingly calm voice. You get better with experience, he would say, even if thinking about living like that for Agni knows how long was precisely the last thing Zuko wanted to hear.

But just like Uncle said, somewhere along the way, Zuko did get better… better at fishing, better at cooking, even if he had preferred stealing. It had seemed somehow more noble to fight. Proud princes of olden days in the stories he grew up with didn't work or try to get by - they took what they wanted. It was the way of the strong - or so he thought.

Now, after seeing people watch their houses burn and yet determined to rebuild their life for their families, he really didn't know anymore. Was it strength to destroy? Was it weakness to hope and start again?

Maybe Uncle was right, but did that mean that everyone else, including Father and Azula were wrong?

Didn't take you long to become a full-blown traitor, did it, Zuzu? You realize you can never come home after this?

Zuko curled his fist digging his nails into his flesh. The pain could center him. Going into that corner of his mind was hopelessness and desperation. If he could never go home, then what was the point of surviving? There had to be a way to fix things, to make Father see. Something he couldn't think of. He just had to find Uncle first...

"I don't understand what you went back for if you didn't take any meat," Toph's grumbling filtered through his troubled thoughts. She leaned against a rock one foot crossed over her other knee, picking her toes which for once were not dirty, as if she had not a care in the world.

Zuko handed over his dagger. "Careful, it's sharp."

Toph felt the object with her delicate fingers. "A knife? You went back for a knife? So what's so special about it?" she asked.

"It's a dagger. And it was a gift from Uncle."

Zuko closed his eyes for a moment, remembering the palace, his mother's voice, the cool silk of his clothes, the excitement of receiving such a grown-up present fit for a warrior. The world that seemed so out of reach now.

"Read the inscription."

"Uhm, blind girl?" Toph pointed at her eyes.

Stupid. Then again, the way she moved so naturally, it was easy to forget.

"Right. Sorry. It says never give up without a fight."

"I like that," grinned Toph.

"I thought you might," Zuko smiled ruefully.

He couldn't quite help remembering how Uncle got it from an Earth Kingdom general. Once upon a time he had thought it ironic that such inscription came from someone who surrendered, who gave up. It had felt rightful that the dagger ended up with someone strong like him. It seemed that such inscription befitted more the prince of the victorious Fire Nation than someone who would yield.

He was so naive back then. After walking Earth Kingdom, especially having met Toph, he understood that it was not so simple. Earthbenders were strong and unyielding like the ground.

You can stand on top of a mountain but that didn't mean you conquered it, Uncle used to say. The mountain was there before you ever came and would be there after your are nothing but ashes. Zuko understood this now deep inside himself.

"Are you very close to your uncle?" Toph asked handing back the blade.

Zuko swallowed hard. He didn't want to admit it for so long, because it felt like choosing Uncle would mean betraying Father, even if Uncle never made him choose. He kept on going, pretending that there was never going to be a fork in the road where Zuko would have to pick; a point of no return. And while he associated Uncle with warm comfort, it also seemed like he was trying to lull Zuko into accepting defeat. His every fibre rebelled against surrendering to that life, against abandoning his destiny.

"He's been there for me, ever since...I left home. And then we had a fight and I just kind of took off. And now I don't know if he's hurt."

"Who would want to hurt Gramps?"

That was really the question. The list was unfortunately quite long. Uncle was notorious in the Earth Kingdom from his military days. Saving Zuko from Azula's trap also meant that he was wanted as a traitor by the Fire Nation. And there were also old acquaintances of dubious repute and angry husbands of ladies he wooed. Zuko hated thinking about those.

"He's led a complicated life…" he answered untruthfully truthful.

Toph nodded, not prodding any further.

"We'll find him."

"What do you mean we? Toph, this has gone on long enough, and things can get dangerous if you are associated with me. You must understand this now that you know who I am. It's time you went home."

Toph scoffed derisively, "Well, Firebug, I got news for you! I'm already associated with you. Have you forgotten these Dai Li creepers are after me too? Even if I wanted to, I don't think going home is an option anymore."

Zuko was so lost in his own head, he didn't even realize that he had dragged her into this dangerous game.

"I'm sorry. I already caused you so much trouble."

"Oh, get over yourself - it's not like you told me what to do," she retorted. "I did what I wanted to do. We are in this together. And anyway - you'll need me."

Zuko wished he could contradict her. Sure, her skills were amazing but still she was just a child and it was wrong for her to be caught up in this. But he couldn't send her away either. She was right - their fates were tied together now. He had to fix things. Not just for himself and uncle, but for her sake as well.

"All right. Let's camp here tonight and see what we can find tomorrow at the desert outpost."


End file.
